An Edmonton Progressive Conservative MLA has stepped away from his cabinet post, to deal with allegations of bribery and tampering.
Edmonton-Ellerslie MLA Naresh Bhardwaj, the Associate Minister for Persons with Disabilities, has stepped away from cabinet following the allegations.
It’s alleged Bhardwaj offered a bribe to someone to undermine the nomination papers of a man seeking the PC nomination in his constituency.
The Tory Party said they are investigating the claims but will not comment.
On Friday, Premier Jim Prentice commented on the claims “Recently, troubling allegations have been made against Naresh Bhardwaj, the Associate Minister of Persons with Disabilities and the MLA for Edmonton-Ellerslie. While these allegations remain unproven, they must be treated seriously.”
The matter is being taken to court.
A second allegation over nominations in Edmonton-Meadowlark
Later Friday, CTV News learned of a second allegation made over nominations in Edmonton-Meadowlark, it is alleged that one of three candidates was offered money to drop out of the race.
PC nomination candidate Steve Benson said he was approached by someone from another campaign to drop out of the race in exchange for cash.
Few details were initially available, but the party released a statement late Friday:
“The PC Alberta Nomination Committee has decided to disallow the candidacy of Tom Choucair in Edmonton-Meadowlark.
“As such, the scheduled vote for Saturday, March 14th will go forward with two candidates: Katherine O'Neill and Steve Benson.”
The PC nomination vote for Edmonton-Meadowlark will take place Saturday night.
