Scindia mounts the final attack on Kamal Nath. Change of power in MP inevitable

In what further exposes the faultlines within the Madhya Pradesh Congress, senior party leader Jyotiradtiya Scindia, has taken a jibe at the Kamal Nath led government in the state. Scindia reportedly said, “The farm loan waiver of farmers has not been done in totality. Loan of only Rs 50,000 has been waived off even when we had said that loan upto Rs 2 Lakh will be waived off. Farm loan upto Rs 2 Lakh should be waived off.” It must be noted that in the run up to the state assembly polls in the states of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh last year, the promise to waive farm loans had figured in a big way in the Congress campaign, and was largely responsible for their electoral victories. Now, this accusation by Scindia has exposed the failure of the Congress government in the state to fulfill its biggest poll promise.

Shivraj Singh Chauhan, the previous Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh and top BJP leader took a swipe at the Kamal Nath government over Scindia’s remarks. In a Hindi tweet, he said, “Not Shivraj, nor the public, now your own people are showing you the mirror and telling you loans have not been waived off, Kamal Nath ji! Will your government not wake up even now? Tears have dried up in farmers’ eyes but they have not received any money in their bank accounts! If you have any shame left then you must take a decision on loan waivers soon.”

It must be noted that this is not the first time that the fissures within the Madhya Pradesh Congress have come to the fore. Days ago, the tussle between the Kamal Nath camp and Scindia camp, factions within the state Congress, resurfaced over the post of Madhya Pradesh Congress chief’s post.

As per a frontline report, Madhya Pradesh Congress has a history of internal tussle with a quadrangular power struggle involving former Chief Ministers, Digvijaya Singh and Arjun Singh, the present Chief Miniser, Kamal Nath and senior party leader Madhavrao Scindia. Arjun Singh and Madhavrao Scindia are no more. However, with their political heirs, Ajay Singh and Jyotiradtiya Scindia are still enjoying the loyalty of the supporters of Arjun Singh and Madhavrao Scindia respectively, and the tussle within the Congress has remained very much alive.

More recently, Jyotiradtiya Scindia has emerged as a threat to the Kamal Nath regime, with his remarks such as the one about failure to fulfill farm loan waiver promise.

According the Frontline report, though the state has seen a four cornered power struggle within the Congress in the past, political analysts believe that it got largely reduced to a bilateral tussle between the Scindia camp and the rest. It is believed that CM Kamal Nath, Digvijaya Singh and Ajay Singh have tactically and successfully buried their differences on many occasions in the past, with the motive of stopping the Scindia juggernaut in the state. It is therefore clear that Scindia is being seen as a real threat to the current dispensation within the Congress.

It is not without reason that the Kamal Nath dispensation has been apprehensive of Scindia. It is relevant to mention here that after the abrogation of Article 370 of the Constitution, Scindia had supported the government’s move, going against the party line. While the apparent Congress stand was severely critical of the abrogation of Article 370, the popular opinion is largely tilted in the favour of the Modi government’s move. Scindia’s support to the Modi government’s move therefore placed him in a really comfortable position as far as the general public perception is concerned.

By speaking openly and frankly on abrogation of Article 370 abrogation, Scindia is largely being seen as a nationalist leader who can look beyond party lines where national interest is the primary consideration.

Recently, while interacting with media in Gwalior, Scindia was asked a question about senior party leader, Salman Khurshid’s remark about leadership “vacuum” within the Congress. To this, Scindia replied, “I don’t comment on others’ statement, but it is true that the Congress needs introspection. The party’s situation should be assessed and improved, and this is the need of the hour.” This could be taken as a subtle hint on his part. However, his latest remark about failure to fulfill the farm loan waiver has gone beyond subtlety and signalling, it is as direct as an accusation can get. With Sonia Gandhi at the helm of affairs, the old guard including Kamal Nath do enjoy a massive advantage of better rapport with the central leadership of the party. However, with his direct jibes at the Kamal Nath government and bold stand on issues that concern the consideration of national interest, Scindia is fast emerging as a huge threat to the current dispensation. He enjoys a rather comfortable position and is well placed to snatch the CM chair from Kamal Nath.