Congress MLAs

The decision came a day after newly elected Congress MLAs passed a resolution authorising the Congress's high command to choose the legislature party's next leader. On Saturday, the Congress high command approved the names.  
 

So far, the Congress has announced candidates for 68 seats of the first phase, while announcement is awaited for 21 seats, including Morbi, Talala, Bhavnagar-Rural, Dhari, Kodinar, Rapar, Bharuch, Rajkot East, Rajkot West, Jambusar, Navsari and Jamnagar Rural.

The Congress will accept nominations for the party chief's post till September 30. The elections are scheduled for October 17 and the results will be declared on October 19. Ashok Gehlot called a meeting of Congress MLAs on Tuesday night, ahead of his visit to Delhi to meet party chief Sonia Gandhi amid speculation that he may contest for the post.

In the 40-member strong Goa Legislative Assembly, the Congress has 11 MLAs. The ruling BJP, with 20 seats, is one short of majority mark but the party enjoys the support of three independent MLAs and two members of the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP).

The MLAs -- Digambar Kamat, Michael Lobo, Rajesh Phaldesai, Delilah Lobo, Kedar Naik, Sankalp Amonkar, Rudolf Fernandes and Aleixo Sequeira -- were seen interacting with Chief Minister Pramod Sawant in a viral photo after a resolution was passed in the Congress Legislature party to merge with the BJP.

The MLAs reportedly claimed authorities they had travelled to Kolkata's Barabazar with the money to give it to tribal people. The MLAs' attorneys said that they were unable to see their clients. Police, income tax, and CID officers interrogated the group in addition to the police.

As of Monday morning, out of total of 11 Congress MLAs in the 40-member Goa Assembly, five were with the party, while five others were out of reach. Another MLA, Aleixo Sequeira, is at home and has pledged his support to the party. The MLAs will reach the assembly complex to take part in the session.

The Congress has denied any schism inside the party, with Goa unit chairman Amit Patkar stating such rumours were generated by the ruling BJP ahead of the assembly's two-week Budget Session, according to news agency PTI.

Ahead of upcoming Punjab polls, former cricketer Dinesh Mongia and Congress MLAs Fateh Singh Bajwa, Balwinder Singh Laddi and Rana Gurmeet Sodhi joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Tuesday at an event in the national capital.

Khaunte became the latest MLA to jump ship to the saffron party after Congress MLAs Ravi Naik, Luizinho Faleiro and Goa Forward Party MLA Jayesh Salgaonkar had resigned in the run-up to the polls.
 

Mukul Sangma is the seventh former Congress chief minister to part ways from the Grand Old Party in the last few years

With the central leadership of the Grand Old Party making up their mind to change the guard in the state, Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel has dispatched 15 MLAs to mount pressure on the high command.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah arrived in Kolkata on Friday (December 18) night. He will address a public rally in Midnapore today (December 19). According to sources, besides Suvendu Adhikari, 19 more Trinamool Congress MLAs are joining the BJP today. 

The NIA probing the August 11 violence in Bengaluru over an alleged inflammatory social media post has questioned two Congress MLAs, Zameer Ahmed Khan and Rizwan Arshad, who were present at the spot on the day of the incident.

Rajasthan governor Kalraj Mishra had earlier sought clarifications on six points from the state government, after Congress MLAs held a five-hour dharna on the lawns of the Raj Bhawan pressing for a Vidhan Sabha session