Bhopal: The dates of the by-elections to be held for all the 28 seats in Madhya Pradesh have been announced. Voting on these seats will be held on November 3 and results will be announced on November 10.
BJP fears rebellion within its own party on most of the 28 assembly seats. This can be witnessed especially on those seats that are fielding pro-Scindia ministers. It is believed that Scindia finds himself alone after joining BJP. Therefore, in Gwalior Chambal zone, he has to toil very hard to maintain his political existence.
Scindia finds himself isolated!
The discussions that are making rounds in the political corridors in full swing are that after joining BJP, Scindia is not accepted by local bigwigs of BJP. This is the reason why even during the election campaign, Scindia did not get the support of the prominent leaders of BJP. Only CM Shivraj and Narendra Singh Tomar have appeared with him on the stage during the election meeting. In such a situation, it is believed that Scindia finds himself alone, and winning his supporters and ministers over to his side is nothing short of a challenge.
Scindia's credibility at stake in Chambal region
This by-election in Madhya Pradesh is also special because this time there will be by-elections on28 seats. Out of 28 seats, 16 seats belong to the Gwalior Chambal zone, where the credibility of Jyotiraditya Scindia who defected from Congress to BJP is at stake. Out of 7 constituencies of Chambal - Dimani, Gohad, Sumawali, Mehgaon, Morena, Ambah, Jaura, three pro-Scindia ministers are going to try their luck. Their path is not going to be easy, as some senior BJP leaders and former ministers can spoil the game of these contestants.
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Party is now engaged in damage control
In the 2018 Legislative Elections, the Congress leaders who had defeated the senior BJP leaders and secured victory, all those leaders are now contesting on a BJP ticket and they are not getting support from the former ministers of BJP. This is the reason why the BJP is feeling scared of dissent within the party. The party is now engaged in damage control.
BJP-Congress have their own claims
BJP says that every election is important for the party, each one is difficult and the party also has its credibility at stake. Same is the case in the upcoming assembly by-election, there is a question of the credibility of the party and it is obvious as it will determine the fate of Jyotiraditya Scindia who is now on BJP’s side. Hence, in this situation, everyone will have to work hard as a team, the party will work hard at its level and Jyotiraditya Scindia will also have to exert to his best capacity. The Congress says that whether BJP’s performance in the by-election are adversely affected by their own cadre or not, the people of these constituencies have been deceived by these leaders and voters will definitely show these defectors their true place.
What do the political experts say
Political analyst Shiv Anurag Pateria says that the prestige of three ministers is at stake on seven seats in Chambal. They are all now against those with whom they were till yesterday. Girraj Dandotia, Andal Singh Kansana, OP S Bhadoria are now leaders in the Shivraj government. Therefore, they are not just contesting for the legislature; these ministers will also contest in these elections to save the positions.
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In such a situation, they will be facing a double challenge one to handle the resentment of BJP leaders and second is to defeat the Congress candidate in the election. And obviously, Scindia's credibility will also be at stake.
What gave rise to the internal dispute
BJP may have returned to power after dethroning the Kamal Nath government, but the road to the by-election appears to be difficult for BJP. The biggest reason for this is the internal dissent within the party, the leaders belonging to these constituencies have represented their party for years and now they are unhappy when the defected leaders from the Congress party are being fielded as contestants in the upcoming by-election, what adds more fuel to the fire is these are the leaders who had defeated them in the 2018 assembly elections. Now the senior BJP leaders have to go to the masses asking them to vote for their erstwhile competitors as they all belong to the same party now.
In this tricky situation, many leaders are not able to protest openly, but these veteran leaders of BJP do not want the new entrants to secure their victory in the upcoming election.
Scindia is toiling hard
Voting on these assembly seats is scheduled on November 3 and the biggest role in these assembly by-elections will be that of Rajya Sabha MP Jyotiraditya Scindia, as all 22 MLAs along with Scindia joined the BJP after defecting from Congress. In such a situation, Jyotiraditya is putting all his efforts to secure these seats. Scindia, recently, along with Chief Minister Shivraj Singh visited these assembly constituencies and sought votes in favor of BJP candidates, because Scindia's credibility along with these three ministers is at stake.
