MP: Acid test for Patwari as 2 Assembly seats in MP go to by-elections
Mr Rawat had switched over to BJP from Congress, leading him to resign from the house
Bhopal: It is a litmus test for Madhya Pradesh Congress president Jitu Patwari with two Assembly constituencies in the state going to the by-elections on November 13.
While by-election to Budhni Assembly constituency necessitated the election of sitting MLA and former chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan to the Lok Sabha recently, the by-poll to Vijaypur Assembly seat was caused by the resignation of sitting MLA and state minister Ramniwas Rawat from the house before the April-May parliamentary polls.
Mr Rawat had switched over to BJP from Congress, leading him to resign from the house.
Although the by-polls to the two Assembly constituencies will hardly have any impact on the Mohan Yadav government, stakes are high particularly for Mr Patwari and Mr Chouhan in the by-elections.
Mr Patwari began his tenure as Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) chief on a sour note with the party facing its worst ever debacle in the recently held LS polls in the state.
The BJP had won all the 28 seats in Madhya Pradesh in the last LS polls.
The Congress’ disastrous show in the LS polls in the state had put Mr Patwari on defensive with his rivals in the party baying for his blood.
The Congress high command had however backed him to the hilt then contending that he should be given more time to prove his mettle, a senior Congress functionary told this newspaper on Wednesday, unwilling to be quoted.
“In this backdrop, the ensuing by-elections to the two Assembly seats in the state are going to be an acid test for Mr Patwari”, he added.
In fact, Mr Patwari has fielded his trusted lieutenants, Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leader Umang Singhar and veteran leader and former Union minister Arun Yadav to steer the party's campaign in Vijaypur and Budhni respectively.
In Vijaypur, Congress has fielded tribal leader Mukesh Malhotra to take on BJP candidate and state minister Mr Rawat, a veteran of eight Assembly elections.
Meanwhile, Mr Malhotra has sought protection from police alleging that he received threats for taking a plunge in the by-elections, according to K K Mishra, media advisor to PCC chief.
In Budhni, Union agriculture minister Mr Chouhan seems to be sparing no efforts to help the ruling BJP retain the seat in the by-elections.
Mr Chouhan held a meeting of the party activists and leaders a couple of days ago to prepare the strategy to win the by-elections in the seat.
His son, Kartikey Singh Chouhan, has been given charge of the campaign for the party in the by-election in the seat.