Dhar (Madhya Pradesh): With announcement of poll date, political fever has gripped Dhar district. The BJP workers are busy campaigning and holding rallies as party has already announced candidates on four out of seven assembly seats of the district. The Congress workers on the other hand are still awaiting the announcement of candidates. In 2018, the Congress had won six out seven seats in Dhar. BJP could manage only one seat through Neena Verma. With delay in announcement of tickets, many believe that the Congress trailing the BJP.
Dhar District Congress president Kamal Kishore Patidar said that party meeting was underway in Delhi and candidates would be announced during Navratri. “This time we will win all seven seats to ensure Congress government in the state,” he said. District BJP president Manoj Somani said, “We are ahead. We have already announced candidates on four seats and soon we will announce candidates on remaining three seats.” Somani exuded confidence that unlike 2018, the BJP would bag all seven seats and ensure party government with thumping majority.
Seat scenario
BJP has already announced candidates for Kukshi, Gandhwani, Dharampuri and Badnawar and is in process of announcing candidates for Dhar, Manawar and Sardarpur. From Kukshi, BJP has fielded Jaideep Patel. In 2018 former Cabinet minister and sitting MLA Honey Baghel had defeated BJP candidate by more than 60,000 votes. From Gandhwani, BJP has fielded district panchayat president Sardar Meda. In 2018, he was defeated by former Cabinet minister and sitting MLA Umang Singhar by more than 20,000 votes.
From Dhar, Manawar, and Sardarpur, BJP is yet to announce its candidates.
From Dharampuri and Badnawar, BJP has announced Kalusingh Thakur and state Cabinet minister Rajvardhan Singh Dattigaon as its candidates respectively. In 2018, Prachilal Meda of Congress had won by a margin of more than 8,000 votes from Dharampuri after the party ignored then sitting MLA Kalu Singh Thakur. Similarly, then Congress leader Dattigaon (now in BJP) defeated BJP candidate by 40,000 votes. After 15-month, Dattigaon switched to the BJP and in the by-election, he won by a margin of 30,000 votes against Congress candidate Kamal Singh Thakur.
