The turmoil of Madhya Pradesh politics is over with the oath-taking ceremony of veteran BJP leader Shivraj Singh Chouhan as the chief minister of the state for the fourth term. He was elected unopposed as the leader of the BJP legislative party. Governor Lalji Tandon administered the oath on Monday amid the rising case of deadly coronavirus.
Chouhan stresses on containing COVID-19
After taking the oath, Chouhan warned his supporters not to go for a celebration. Instead, he advised them to give priority to contain the coronavirus outbreak. Chouhan told legislators that his priority was to contain the COVID-19 outbreak. “I will go to the Vallabh Bhavan (Secretariat) tonight itself to contain corona. Like a family, we need to fight this disease.”
22 Congress MLAs turncoat
Kamal Nath had to resign on Thursday because 22 Congress MLAs loyal of Jyotiraditya Scindia resigned from the party and jumped on the ship of the BJP. Therefore, Congress lost the majority in the state assembly, and the baton once again passed to the saffron party. The BJP’s strategy to form government in MP is a replica of Karnataka politics.
Scindia needs power
The main focus was on Jyotiraditya Scindia, who quit the Congress party after serving for 18 years. He was considered a bosom friend of Rahul Gandhi.
Congress neglects Scindia
The Maharaj of Gwaliar’s relation with the Congress party turned sour after the slender victory of the grand old party in the Madhya Pradesh assembly polls in 2018. He played a vital role in Congress’ success but the party high command turned down his effort. However, Kamal Nath took charge of the state as the new chief minister. Negligence of Jyotiraditya hurt him from the bottom of the heart. He was looking for the right time to avenge.
The two stalwarts of the Congress Kamal Nath and Digvijay Singh were considered reasons for Scindia leaving the party. They tried to cut his clips to make him a pawn of the party. Hence, both the senior party leaders were overlooking in nominating him as the Rajya Sabha member from the state. Not to talk of others even Sonia Gandhi remained mum on the situation and didn’t meddle in the soaring tension in Madhya Pradesh. In the end, Scindia turned saffron along with 22 MLAs.
Digvijay’s effort turn futile
When everything was lost, Digvijay Singh went to Bengaluru to meet the rebel Congress MLAs who were kept in a hotel. But it became too late, and his last-minute effort turned futile. Meanwhile, lotus once blossomed in the state.
Not an easy path
Most of the Scindia’s loyalists belong to the Gwalior-Chambal region, which is considered a strong den of Scindia. All these MLAs will have to face a by-election. Currently, the saffron party has been enjoying the support of 107 MLAs in the assembly; its current strength is 206. The BJP needs to win six seats if all the independent MLAs support. If it doesn’t take place, then the saffron party has to win nine seats. But Kamal Nath will not shallow this defeat easily; he may turn hostile and change the mathematical calculation. This is the speculation, which is far from the truth.
Congress looks optimistic
Congress spokesperson Syed Jafar said, “I am sure the voters would punish the defectors. This will be a lesson for their backers. The Congress will contest the by-elections on the slogan “15 months vs 15 years”. At the moment, the state Congress party workers are dejected and silent; they need a survival instinct to get the lost ground and topple the BJP government.
Political pundits are debating the debacle of Kamal Nath’s government. Some say it is undemocratic. Operation Kamal succeeded in Karnataka so is the case with Madhya Pradesh. Hence, Rajasthan, Jharkhand and Chattisgarh in the pipeline may face the backlash of operation Kamal shortly.
