In a move that could possibly throw the Madhya Pradesh state politics into utter turmoil, Jyotiraditya Scindia quit the Congress party following a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He is expected to join the BJP, as the saffron party set in motion its plan to topple the Kamal Nath government. At least 22 Congress MLAs, many of whom loyal to Jyotiraditya, have resigned, reducing the ruling Congress in the state to a minority.
He took the decision to sever his ties with the Congress on the day of his father Madhavrao Scindia's 75th birth anniversary. His choosing the specific day is no coincidence. There is a historical significance behind the move. To analayse what happened in Madhya Pradesh, it is necessary to understand the history of the Gwalior royal dynasty (of which Scindia is a member) and its intertwined history with the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty.
Gwalior royal dynasty
Jyotiraditya's grandmother, Vijayaraje Scindia, popularly known as 'Rajmata' and the partner of the last Maharaja of Gwalior Jivajirao Scindia, was one of the founding members of the BJP. Jyotiraditya's father Madhavrao was a Congress stalwart and a close confidante of Rajiv Gandhi. The Gwalior royal family was always one that hedged against any change in political winds; while Jyotiraditya became a prominent face for the Congress in Madhya Pradesh, his aunts (daughters of Rajmata and sisters to Madhavrao) Vasundhara Raje (former Rajasthan CM) and Yashodhara Raje Scindia (former minister) are currently in the BJP fold. Yashodhara, Madhavrao's younger sister, welcomed her nephew's decision to resign from the Congress, calling it in the "interest of the nation". "Rajmata's blood took the decision in the national interest, the new country will be created, now every distance has ended. @jyotiraditya, I warmly welcome the bold move to leave the Congress," she tweeted.
How history repeated, from Rajmata to Jyotiraditya
In 1967, when Rajmata tendered her resignation from the Congress who ruled Madhya Pradesh, she took along with her 36 Congress MLAs, which forced the government to collapse and the chief minister D.P. Mishra (Indira Gandhi's close confidante) to resign. Fast forward to 2020. Rajmata's grandson Jyotiraditya Scindia announced resignation from Madhya Pradesh Congress, taking with him enough MLAs to strike fear of an impending government collapse.
The political trajectory of the Rajmata is an interesting one. After winning three Lok Sabha elections with the Congress, she was impeded by intense political differences with Indira Gandhi, who even jailed her at one point of time during the emergency. She joined the Jana Sangh and became one of the founder members of the BJP. Indira, in 1966, snubbed Rajmata of ministership; she, in turn, joined the Swatantra Party of C. Rajagopalachari before switching to Jana Sangh and the BJP. She was instrumental in the political evolution of BJP stalwarts like Atal Behari Vajpayee.
Understanding Jyotiraditya's decision, through his father's past
Madhavrao Scindia started politically by contesting for Jana Sangh in 1971. But, he was soon disenchanted; he became an independent candidate in 1977, and shifted allegiances to the Congress in the 1980. He handled lucrative portfolios like Railways and Human Resource Departments, and emerged as the top advisor for Rajiv Gandhi. For Rahul Gandhi, it was his son Jyotiraditya.
History repeats in more ways than one. Scindia's loyalists point out that he has avenged insults by the party on his father by walking out of the clutches of Madhya Pradesh CM Kamal Nath and former CM Digvijay Singh. After the era of Rajiv Gandhi, Madhavrao was never on the best of the terms with the P.V. Narasimha Rao government. When Madhavrao passed away in an untimely aircraft crash in September 2001, he was considered at the time a prospective candidate for prime minister. But, just like Jyotiraditya, the father was spurned by the party, unable to claim the ultimate prize in the politics of his native state: The chief minister's chair in Madhya Pradesh.
Madhavrao had felt cheated out of it. In 1989, then Madhya Pradesh chief minister Arjun Singh was force to step down after the Jabalpur High Court ruled that a lottery run by his son had violated laws. At the time, Madhavrao Scindia had hoped to become chief minister. However, Arjun Singh took MLAs loyal to him to the residence of an aide to force the Congress, then led by Rajiv Gandhi, to not appoint Madhavrao to the chief minister's post. Motilal Vora was sworn in as a 'compromise' chief minister. In 1996, Madhavrao resigned, rebelling against the Congress and formed an independent Madhya Pradesh Vikas Congress (MPVC). He did return some years later, when the era of Rao and Sitaram Kesri were over, and Sonia Gandhi rose to the helm.
Congress reactions
Several Congress leaders slammed Jyotiraditya Scindia for quitting the party, accusing him of betraying the trust of the people and placing "personal ambition" over ideology. Hitting out at Scindia, many Congress leaders referred to the 1857 revolt against the East India Company and the role of the Scindia royals back then as well as Vijaya Raje Scindia's switch from the Congress in 1967. A shell-shocked Congress, in a largely symbolic move of no consequence, expelled Scindia, the party general secretary and scion of the erstwhile Gwalior royal family, on charges of anti-party activities. Reacting to the development, Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot accused Scindia of betraying the trust of people and ideology, saying people like him cannot thrive without power and the sooner they leave, the better it is.
"Joining hands with the BJP in a time of national crisis speaks volumes about a leader's self-indulgent political ambitions, especially when the BJP is ruining the economy, democratic institutions, social fabric and as well the judiciary," he said on Twitter. Congress leader in Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said ideology did not matter to Scindia, and claimed that "political convenience" and "personal ambition" played a major part in his decision to quit the party.
Chowdhury alleged that some sort of "allurement and enticement" offered by the Bharatiya Janata Party had convinced Scindia to switch over from the Congress.
-Inputs from PTI