BJP-Congress face-off intensifies for bypolls in MP

By Sandeep Pouranik

Bhopal, Sep 15 (IANS) Even before the announcement of the dates for the by-elections scheduled to be held in three Assembly and one Lok Sabha constituency in Madhya Pradesh, the political fight between the BJP and the Congress has already intensified.

The BJP has ramped up its efforts for these by-elections with party leaders and MP ministers actively working in the areas going to the polls.

By-elections are being held in the three assembly constituencies of Raigaon in Satna district, Prithvipur in Niwari and Jobat in Alirajpur district. A by-election is also scheduled in the Khandwa Lok Sabha constituency.

Of the four by-elections, Jobat and Prithvipur were held by Congress MLAs while Raigaon was controlled by a BJP MLA and Khandwa too had a BJP MP. These four seats are lying vacant since the death of their representatives.

Apart from the party organisation in-charge, all BJP ministers have also been entrusted with responsibilities in the polls.

BJP State President Vishnu Datt Sharma has visited many areas while Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan is trying to reach out to the voters under the 'Jan Darshan' programme.

Chouhan recently held 'Jan Darshan' programmes in several villages of Raigaon and Prithvipur assembly constituencies and assured the people that the BJP government will work even harder for the welfare of each section of the society. The Chief Minister promised that any complaints against any state government official will immediately be acted upon.

Vishnu Dutt Sharma believes that there is better coordination between the party and the state government due to which the various government initiatives are being successfully implemented with the hard work of the party workers. The state government has achieved huge success during the two phases of the Covid vaccination campaign which has been possible only due to the party workers.

On the other hand, the Congress has taken jibes at Chouhan's aggressive policies. Madhya Pradesh Congress spokesperson Ajay Singh Yadav said that Chouhan only believes in indulging in political drama. Chouhan engaged in political drama during the Jan Darshan programme and action was taken against the state officials to fool the general public, Yadav added.

"The Chief Minister has suspended state officials over irregularities in the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana in Prithvipur. If such strict action is taken against all officials there will no longer be any Chief Minister's Office (CMO) or Tehsildar left in the state. This is because there is not a single municipal corporation and panchayat in the state where corruption and misappropriation of funds has not taken place under the PM Awas Yojana."

According to political analysts, the upcoming Assembly and Lok Sabha bypolls are quite significant in view of the state's politics. While these elections are crucial for the BJP, the Congress, too, has taken these elections seriously. The results of these by-elections will have a big impact on the 2024 Assembly elections.