Bhopal: Twenty-four ministers in Madhya Pradesh today quit to show solidarity with Chief Minister Uma Bharati who sent her resignation to BJP President Venkaiah Naidu yesterday in the wake of a non-bailable warrant issued against her by a Karanataka court. "It becomes our moral responsibility and duty to step-down from ministership following the resignation of the chief minister", Agriculture and Cooprative Minister Gopal Bhargava said here. The resignations were aimed at expressing complete solidarity with Bharti ahead of the BJP Parliamentary Board meeting in New Delhi tomorrow to consider her resignation, he said. The ministers sent their resignations to state BJP chief Kailash Joshi. Among those who resigned are Energy Minister Anup Mishra and Public Health Engineering Minister Sunil Naik, besides Bhargava. Mishra said all 35 ministers in the state would resign to show their "unflinching support" for Bharti. So far 24 ministers have resigned and the remaining would join soon, he said. Faced with an NBW issued by a Hubli court in a rioting case, Bharati had sent her resignation to party chief Venkaiah Naidu yesterday saying "in today's situation my resignation is necessary". She had also sent a letter to Congress President Sonia Gandhi seeking dropping of all "tainted" ministers from the Union Cabinet.
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