A three-day visit of Rajya Sabha member Jyotiraditya Scindia to Madhya Pradesh started in Bhopal on Wednesday, keeping the political temperatures high in the state capital.
Scindia met and lunched with state BJP president Vishnu Dutt Sharma at the latter’s residence in the presence of state organizing general secretary Suhas Bhagat and joint organizing general secretary Hitanand. Later, Scindia accompanied by Sharma and Hitanand also met Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan. In the evening, the MP who switched from Congress to BJP last year, visited the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) office in Bhopal alone and met central zone functionary Deepak Vispute.
All through the day, while speaking to media on different occasions, Scindia maintained that BJP was his family and he had come to meet the family members. He said that every meeting and action should not be painted with political colour and dismissed any differences of opinion among the MP BJP members. He also dismissed speculations over change in guard and said that under leadership of Chief Minister Chouhan, the state had very effectively controlled the COVID-19 pandemic second wave and this was laudable.
He said that the Congress had habit of raising questions on everything that was good and he did not pay attention to it. Scindia added that the BJP was a disciplined party and would continue to function as such. On the probability of his becoming a Union minister, Scindia reiterated that his sole aim was to serve the people.
Speculations had been rife on probable change of guard in MP as a series of closed door meetings between prominent BJP leaders of the state such as Kailash Vijayvargiya, Narottam Mishra, Prahlad Patel, Prabhat Jha, Vishnu Dutt Sharma, Suhas Bhagat and Hitanand had taken place during the course of past week, just ahead of Scindia’s visit. As CM Chouhan was not present in most of the meetings, rumours were afloat on him being shifted to centre and MP getting a new CM.
However, Vijayvargiya and Mishra had trashed the speculations on Monday. Mishra said the party was united under Chouhan and Sharma—a statement that he repeated on Wednesday morning, too. Vijayvargiya said he was nowhere in the race (for CM) and that he was engaged elsewhere.
Meanwhile, a report of home minister Narottam Mishra getting upset over some decisions and storming out of the state cabinet meeting on Tuesday came to the fore on Wednesday. Mishra dismissed it as media speculation and said that the chief minister always conducted the cabinet meeting in democratic manner and an in-depth discussion on any issue could not be construed as anger.
Also, the announcement of names of members of executive committee of state BJP on Tuesday midnight, hours before arrival of Scindia, gave rise to rumours that the list was hurried through before Scindia could get any major changes made. However, the list includes names of many of Scindia supporters. The fact that a list with caste mentions before names was released on social media by mistake was also a matter of discussion.
The Congress took a dig at the BJP with its spokesman Narendra Saluja tweeting an apparent warning to CM Chouhan. Sharing a photograph of Scindia embracing Sharma warmly at the latter’s residence, Saluja said: “Shivraj ji beware. You were not seen at the lunch and a warm meeting (of Scindia) with the focal point of your opponents. Even small fry supporters of his (Scindia) were included in the executive committee at the last hour. All this gives many indications.”