Congress MLAs Missing as Cross-Voting Speculations Arise Ahead of Legislative Polls

Three Congress MLAs in Maharashtra skipped a crucial party meeting ahead of the legislative council polls. The absent legislators include Zeeshan Siddique, Jitesh Antapurkar, and Sanjay Jagtap. Despite these absences, senior Congress leader Nitin Raut stated that the party is in a comfortable position, dismissing concerns about cross-voting.

In a surprising turn of events, three of the 37 Congress MLAs in Maharashtra skipped a critical meeting organized by the party ahead of upcoming legislative council polls on Friday.

Those absent from Thursday night's meeting included Zeeshan Siddique, whose father joined the Ajit Pawar-led NCP, and Jitesh Antapurkar, reportedly close to former chief minister Ashok Chavan—now with BJP. Sanjay Jagtap was also missing due to his involvement in a religious pilgrimage, with prior notice given to the party leadership.

Despite these absences, senior Congress leader Nitin Raut reassured the party's stance, emphasizing that the Congress is in a secure position. Raut accused the ruling alliance of holding their MLAs hostage out of fear, a tactic Congress has avoided. Legislative council polls require each candidate to secure a quota of 23 first-preference votes, with Congress nominating one candidate and allocating surplus votes to allies.

(With inputs from agencies.)