M. P. Congress treating overtures from turncoats with caution

The return of Baijnath Singh Yadav to the Madhya Pradesh Congress from the BJP on June 14 will not be the only return that the Congress is anticipating, but those seeking to return will have to pass the test of acceptability of the district unit of the Congress to which they used to belong.

The return of Baijnath Singh Yadav to the Madhya Pradesh Congress from the BJP on June 14 will not be the only return that the Congress is anticipating, but those seeking to return will have to pass the test of acceptability of the district unit of the Congress to which they used to belong.

Mr. Yadav, considered close to Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia and having a stronghold in Shivpuri, had switched to the BJP in 2020 when several MLAs of the Congress had changed sides and brought down the Kamal Nath-led Congress government in Madhya Pradesh. Cue to yet another Assembly poll cycle and the fact that the Congress managed to get its own mayor elected to Gwalior and Jabalpur in last year’s local body election, a feat accomplished after 57 years and 23 years respectively, has many Congress leaders from the region who had switched to the BJP seeking to return.

“There have been overtures but the Congress leadership in the State is clear, this is not going to be an indiscriminately applied amnesty. These leaders, many of whom were instrumental in stealing the mandate of the Congress in Madhya Pradesh, have been told quite clearly that only if the local unit of the Congress in their district gives a report that the return of these leaders is essential for winning in their area, then will it be entertained,” said a senior leader in Madhya Pradesh Congress involved in the matter.

“Congress leadership is quite aware that a lot of this outreach just before election is because of positioning, if one is anticipating that one might not get a ticket etc. So all such requests for a ghar wapsi [return to home] are being treated with caution, whatever be their narrative worth,” said the source.

A senior leader of the Congress pointed out that as recently as last month, Ministers from Sagar district, Gopal Bhargava and Govind Singh Rajput along with two other MLAs Pradeep Lariya and Shailendra Jain had spoken out against a fellow Minister Bhupendra Singh, who is considered close to Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan. Their complaint was that Mr. Bhupendra Singh was throwing his weight around in their Assembly constituencies.

“The Congress on the other hand is united this time and seeking a clear majority,” said the source. Last week, the party launched its campaign for the Assembly election with AICC general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra offering a Narmada pooja (prayers to River Narmada) and addressing a rally in Jabalpur.