New Delhi: Karnataka BJP president and Leader of Opposition R Ashoka on Tuesday alleged that two to three BJP legislators cross-voted during the recent Karnataka Legislative Council (MLC) elections and said the party would seek disciplinary action against those responsible.

Speaking to reporters in Delhi ahead of a meeting with the BJP's central leadership, Ashoka said, "Today, we will meet the BJP National President regarding cross-voting in Karnataka (MLC elections). Even though two of our candidates won, 2-3 of our MLAs cross-voted against the BJP. This is a serious matter. We came here to explain the whole thing to the BJP Central leadership. The party will take serious action against this cheating."

Ashoka, along with other senior Karnataka BJP leaders, is scheduled to meet BJP National President Nitin Nabin to discuss the issue.

The development comes in the wake of the June 18 Karnataka MLC elections, where the Congress secured five of the seven available seats, while the BJP won only two despite having 64 MLAs in the Assembly.

Earlier, BJP's central leadership reportedly expressed strong displeasure over allegations of cross-voting by party legislators. Karnataka BJP president B.Y. Vijayendra, R Ashoka and state in-charge Radhamohan Das Agarwal were asked to appear before the central leadership in Delhi on June 23.

To investigate the matter, the Karnataka BJP has formed a three-member committee tasked with examining allegations that some legislators voted against the party's official candidates.

According to a statement issued by the party, state president B.Y. Vijayendra said information had emerged suggesting that certain MLAs cross-voted, resulting in a setback for BJP candidates in the election.

The committee includes MLC C.T. Ravi, state vice-president N. Mahesh and MLA Mahesh Tenginakayi. It has been directed to submit a detailed report by June 25.

The election results have raised questions within both the BJP and its NDA ally JD(S). While the Congress, which has 135 MLAs, secured 151 votes and saw all five of its candidates elected in the first round, the BJP's two candidates together received only 56 votes despite the party having 64 MLAs.

The JD(S), which has 18 MLAs, secured only 14 votes for its candidate. Under the NDA arrangement, the BJP had allocated three of its MLAs to support the JD(S) nominee, which should have taken the tally to 21 votes. However, the candidate eventually received just 14 votes.

The outcome has fuelled allegations of cross-voting within both BJP and JD(S) ranks, prompting internal reviews by the parties.