Setback for BJP as Vishwendra joins Cong

NEW DELHI: BJP MP Vishwendra Singh, who resigned from the party alleging sale of tickets in Rajasthan, joined Congress on Friday. The Bharatpur MP had on Thursday quit the BJP alleging the influence of ���money power��� in the selection of candidates and spawned BJP���s own version of the ���ticket-for-cash��� scandal which has embarrassed the Congress.

The leader, who was a close advisor of Rajasthan chief minister Vasundhara Raje, is expected to damage the BJP���s election prospects in about 6-8 seats in the Bharatpur division which has 20 constituencies in all. In Dig-Kumher, the seat from where he said he would be contesting the elections, Mr Singh will be up against an emerging Jat leader of the BJP. Mr Singh and his wife Divya Singh, who also resigned as BJP MLA recently, are known to have considerable clout among Jat voters in Deeg, Bharatpur and Kumher assembly constituencies.

The Congress announced on Friday that party chief Sonia Gandhi had accorded her approval to the admission of Mr Singh into the party with immediate effect. The leader, who is a scion of Bharatpur royal family, had said on Thursday: ���I have been active member of BJP and political adviser to Rajasthan CM. I have seen things from very close quarters. I am dismayed by the sale of tickets for the Rajasthan assembly polls and have decided to leave the party.���

The BJP���s ���ticket-for-cash��� episode had come close on the heels of a similar allegation levelled by senior Congress leader Margaret Alva against her party that tickets for Karnataka assembly election were sold. The Congress subsequently sacked her from its highest decision-making bodies, the Working Committee and the Central Election Committee.

It also accepted her resignation as party general secretary in-charge of a number of states. Another Congress leader, Yogendra Makwana, who had endorsed Ms Alva���s charges and talked of similar complaints from Rajasthan was removed as the head of the party Scheduled Caste department. He expected announce the formation of a new party in the coming days.