The Congress in Karnataka has filed a police complaint accusing the BJP of trying to ‘poach’ two independent MLAs and two from local parties before voting next week to fill four Rajya Sabha seats from the state.

The Congress – which defeated the BJP in last year’s Assembly election – has alleged several crore rupees have been offered to two independent MLAs and two others from local parties. The ruling party has claimed the two independents and at least one of the other two were ready to back its candidates.

The BJP has rubbished the Congress’ accusations.

Controversy over the four seats – which will fall vacant on April 2 – broke after Kupendra Reddy of the Janata Dal (Secular), which is allied with the BJP, was fielded as a fifth candidate.

At present the Congress holds three of the four seats, and has opted to retain Syed Nazeer Hussain, while giving Dalit writer L Hanumanthaiah’s seat to former Union Minister Ajay Maken. The BJP, meanwhile, has given Union Minister Rajeev Chandrashekhar’s seat to Narayana Bhandage.

The row is over the fourth seat – held for now by the Congress’ GC Chandrasekhar.

In Karnataka, a party needs 46 MLAs to send one of its leaders to the Rajya Sabha.

The Congress has 135 lawmakers in the Assembly and claims the support of the two independent MLAs and a third, which gives it just enough to retain its three seats that fall vacant in this round.

Should those three not back the Congress, it could lose the seat to the BJP-JDS, which has a combined 85 MLAs. The two do not have the numbers, by themselves, to win the fourth seat unopposed, but might snatch the seat thanks to the preferential voting system.

The Congress’ complaint is that the BJP-JDS fielding a fifth candidate is an indication it will indulge in horse-trading. “The NDA has fielded a fifth candidate to encourage horse trading. We have filed the complaint (with the Bengaluru Police Commissioner) and have said more details will be provided.”

The Congress has claimed the three independent MLAs have been approached via intermediaries, including professionals like hotel owners and doctors. Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar has denounced the candidature of Mr Reddy as the BJP and JDS trying to manipulate the votes.

Mr Reddy, meanwhile, has told NDTV, “These are independent MLAs (and) I have every right to canvas for votes. I did not offer any money to them.”

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Shilpa Shetty Kundra and Raj Kundra arrived in style at the Mumbai airport ahead of Rakul Preet and Jackky Bagnani’s wedding in Goa.

Raj was seen sporting a checkered shirt and dark blue jeans, while Shilpa was spotted in an ivory power suit and white sneakers as accessories.

As the bride and groom are all set to tie the knot, there’s an immense buzz going around about Shilpa Shetty Kundra and Raj Kundra performing a Punjabi mashup at their wedding festivities.

While Shilpa and Raj are both close to Jackky’s family, especially his father, Vashu Bhagnani, the groom also performed at Shilpa and Raj’s wedding.

Check out the photos here:

Popular TV and film actor Rituraj Singh passed away on Tuesday. According to reports in ETimes, he died of cardiac arrest at 59. He was also battling pancreatic disease. His sudden death has left his loved ones and the entertainment industry shocked.

Rituraj Singh’s Anupamaa co-star Rupali Ganguly has now paid tribute to the late actor. The actress took to her social media handle and wrote, “Dear Rituraj Sir, It was an honour to share screen space with you… like an enthusiastic student getting to learn her favourite subject from a teacher who has taught many others, I was overjoyed… You said you had seen my work and yet I wanted to prove to you that I could earn my place in the frame standing next to one of the legends of television whom I had watched growing up… your all-knowing smile after our scenes and your words of encouragement was like a report card to me.”

She shared snaps of the actor from the show’s sets. Check it out here:

She added, “I was thrilled by your kind words… but there was so much more to learn Sir…. These pictures I had taken of you when you wore the chef cap… I was tardy in sending it to you… never thought these would be put up here as a remembrance…. Your life stories, quirky sense of humour, immense knowledge about world cinema and talent shall always be remembered. Thank you for being Yashpal Sir to my Anupamaa. Thank you for the words that left an indelible mark.”

She concluded, “Your life stories, quirky sense of humour, immense knowledge about world cinema and your talent shall always be remembered. Thank you for being Yashpal Sir to my Anupamaa .. Thank you for the words that left an indelible mark…Rupali” 

Rituraj Singh is known for TV shows like Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai, OTT series like Made In Heaven Season 2 and films like Badrinath Ki Dulhania. He is survived by his wife and two children.