Maheshwar (Madhya Pradesh): With the Assembly elections closing in, political atmosphere is beginning to heat-up in all the political parties, particularly with BJP as the party facing internal rift in many places where the party announced the candidates well ahead of the polls.
After Jhabua, Chachaura and Kasrawad, BJP is facing same situation in Kukshi (Dhar district) and in Maheshwar (Khargone district) where party workers raised their protest against the party’s official candidates.
They are demanding party to change these candidates. Notably, BJP announced Jaideep Patel as its candidate from Kukshi, while Rajkumar Meo from Maheshwar.
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We Want Local Candidate In Kukshi
BJP leaders and workers from Kukshi Assembly constituency met BJP State president VD Sharma and raised their demand for a local candidate. They claimed that the party candidate Jaideep Patel hails from Alirajpur district and he is an outsider. We want party to give priority to the local worker, they demanded.
“Ticket should be given to the local candidate from Kukshi, as earlier under influence of some senior leaders, family members of former cabinet minister Ranjana Baghel got the tickets and faced defeat.”
Notably, Virendra Singh Baghel, son of Ranjana Baghel’s sister and her husband Mukam Singh Kirade were made candidates and they lost elections by margine of 63,000 and 45,000 respectively.
“In such a scenario party must change its candidate and award ticket to some local worker,” they added.
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Verma’s Supporters Meet VD
In Sonkatch constituency of Dewas district, hundreds of supporters of Rajendra Verma rushed to Bhopal and met BJP State president VD Sharma, demanding change of party’s official candidate.
Notably, BJP fielded former MLA and BJP Indore rural district president Rajesh Sonkar from Sonkatch constituency. After that there was a resentment among the party workers against his candidature.
After an announcement of first list of 39 candidates, scores of BJP workers raised their objection and started posting messages lending their support to Verma and opposing Sonkar’s candidature.
During the meeting with VD Sharma, Verma’s supporters demanded top leadership to rethink on his candidature and award ticket to Verma.
Verma's supporters say that even after losing the election in 2018, Verma remained more active than the current MLA and left no stone unturned in getting the work done for the residents of the area. He has also served the residents of the area during the Covid-19 period. In such a situation, we will question the office-bearers of the organisation in the State on what basis Verma's ticket was denied, they argued.
