By PTI
CHANDIGARH: Adampur Congress MLA Kuldeep Bishnoi on Saturday said he is consulting his supporters to decide his next course of action, days after he cross-voted in the Rajya Sabha polls and appears to be warming up to the BJP.
“I am consulting my supporters on next step after which I will decide next course of action,” said Bishnoi, who was expelled by the Congress recently from all party positions.
When asked if he is in touch with BJP leaders, Bishnoi said his next step will be taken keeping in mind interests of people of Haryana and his constituency.
Bishnoi, who is younger son of former Haryana chief minister Bhajan Lal, was speaking to reporters in Delhi after Rajya Sabha MP Kartikeya Sharma had called on him at his residence there.
Kartikeya, an Independent who was backed by the BJP and the JJP, won one of the two Rajya Sabha seats from Haryana last week.
Congress candidate Ajay Maken failed to secure the Rajya Sabha berth after Bishnoi cross-voted while the vote of an MLA was declared invalid.
Bishnoi, who has been sulking after party ignored him for the post of Haryana Congress president in a revamp of state unit recently, said, “It was a difficult moment for me to vote against Ajay Maken. But I have said I was upset because of which I voted against the Congress.”
Meanwhile, former Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda hit out at Bishnoi, saying appointing Udai Bhan as the Haryana Congress chief was party’s prerogative.
Hooda said Bishnoi should have welcomed the appointment of Udai Bhan, who comes from the Dalit community.
He has deceived people of Adampur, Hooda said attacking Bishnoi.
“The appointment of state unit chief was done by party high command and not me,” said Hooda.
When asked that Bishnoi has said that under Hooda’s leadership Congress’ ship has been sinking, the senior Congress leader replied, “I do not need anyone’s certificate. It is people who give a certificate and they have elected me with a big margin even when the Congress was in opposition in the 2019 polls”.
On the invalid vote during the polls, Hooda said, “The party is looking into this.
Whether it was done by mistake or deliberately, the party will look into it”.
Hooda said the party’s Haryana affairs in charge Vivek Bansal, who was the party’s polling agent for the Rajya Sabha polls, will be knowing whose vote was declared invalid.
