By Pervez Bari, TwoCircles.net
Bhopal : A meeting of Madhya Pradesh Congress legislatures was held here on Wednesday in the State Vidhan Sabha premises to chalk out a strategy for the polling in the presidential election tomorrow.
Madhya Pradesh Congress Committee, (MPCC), observer Raju Bhai Parmar addressed the MLAs appealing them to exercise their franchise at the earliest tomorrow in favour of United Progressive Alliance-Left combine candidate for the presidential election Ms Pratibha Patil. He urged the them to vote according to the whip issued
MPCC president Subhash Yadav and Congress Leader of the Opposition in the State Vidhan Sabha Ms Jamuna Devi also spoke on the occasion and urged the MLAs to cast their votes cautiously. Ms Devi also distributed the appeal letter send to her by the presidential candidate Ms Patil to the MLAs on the occasion.
Congress MLAs Dr. Govind Singh and Sajjan Singh Verma have been made polling agent of Ms Patil.
Meanwhile, Election Commission Observer and Joint Secretary (Defence Production) Alok Parti today took stock of voting preparations at the Madhya Pradesh Assembly building for tomorrow's presidential election. He was briefed by Principal Secretary (Assembly) A K Payasi.
Madhya Pradesh Chief Election Officer J S Mathur, Principal Secretary (Home) Satyaprakash and Commissioner (Public Relations) Manoj Shrivastav were also present.
According to Dr Payasi polling will take place between 1000 and 1700 hrs. Taking cellphones, cameras, cordless phones and other wireless or electronic instruments into the polling chamber will be prohibited, he added. .
Meanwhile, Ms Pratibha Patil, two days before the election, formed a separate group of party leaders in Madhya Pradesh other than MPCC for helping her in getting votes from non-Congress legislatures.
Pratibha's relative Virendra Singh Raghuwanshi hailing from Ujjain is a former legislature of the Congress and a senior leader. Virendra's sister is married to Pratibha's brother. Sources said that Pratibha had summoned him and State Congress spokesman Brijmohan Shrivastava in Delhi on Monday and they were given responsibility of cross voting in her favour. At least four legislatures of ruling BJP also met Pratibha in Delhi.
The MPCC is already working for harnessing the possibilities of cross voting by BJP legislatures during the election, but Pratibha has played a new card now by mobilising her family member and friends.
However, both of these leaders who have been shouldered new responsibility are in continuous touch with the suspended BJP MLAs and few others of the ruling BJP. These leaders are considered close to State Congress president Subhash Yadav and their success would certainly help Yadav in continuing with the present office.
Sources claimed that Subhash Yadav would once again emerge, as a stronger leader if his supporters managed to get votes of at least six or seven legislatures from the ruling BJP in the state.