Bhopal: Ahead of the Presidential elections on July 18, Opposition candidate Yashwant Sinha on Thursday reached Bhopal and appealed to MPs and MLAs of the state to vote in his favour. In a press conference, Sinha accused the ruling BJP government of horse-trading even when it came to the highest constitutional post in the country, and demanded an investigation. He alleged the BJP of running 'operation lotus' prior to the elections.
"This morning, I read this news published in a leading newspaper of the state, which had this headline: 'BJP eyeing 28 Congress MLAs, preparations on for cross-voting'. I have also heard from reliable sources that large sums of money are being offered to non-BJP MLAs to vote for the party's candidate in the presidential elections.
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This clearly indicates that 'operation kamal' (lotus) is now on for even the highest office in the republic. The BJP is scared of the outcome of a free and fair presidential elections," he said. Sinha also equated the alleged 'operation kamal' to 'operation mal' (dirt), saying "it has become synonymous with dirty political corruption by the ruling party". "It has been used to create defections in opposition parties and even to topple state governments run by the opposition parties."
"Apart from Madhya Pradesh, the BJP has used it to dislodge opposition governments in Karnataka, Goa, Arunachal Pradesh, and most recently in Maharashtra. In all this, I hear alarm bells for democracy in India," Sinha said. The BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) has fielded Droupadi Murmu, a tribal leader from Odisha, as its candidate for the election to the post of president. The presidential polls will be held on July 18. (Agency inputs)
