BHOPAL: The third and penultimate phase of Lok Sabha polls in Madhya Pradesh, which were held on Tuesday, may turn out to be the toughest phase for the ruling BJP, which has been aiming to win all 29 seats in the state this time.
According to informed sources on the ground, four of the nine seats where polling occurred on Tuesday could have seen a tough battle between the BJP and the Congress.
The four seats include the Rajgarh seat of central MP, from where ex-CM and Rajya Sabha member Digvijaya Singh is the Congress candidate after 33 years from his home seat, and three seats of the Gwalior-Chambal region, including Gwalior, Morena and Bhind.
According to a young BJP leader in Morena district, the battle for the Morena seat between former BJP MLA Satyapal Singh Sikarwar ‘Nitu’ (who was the Congress candidate this time) and Vidhan Sabha Speaker and ex-MP Narendra Singh Tomar’s loyalist ex-BJP MLA Shiv Mangal Tomar may really emerge as a tough contest for the ruling party.
“While the Kshatriya vote may well have split into two parts between the two candidates hailing from the Sikarwar Kshatriya clan and the Tomar Kshatriya clan respectively, the BJP’s core Baniya (trader community) vote may have gone in substantial numbers towards the BSP candidate Ramesh Garg. Also, with the BJP candidate being seen as a rubber-stamp of Narendra Singh Tomar, a major faction of the BJP, particularly the Brahmins, may have either been silent or supported the Congress candidate, who is the son of two-time ex-BJP MLA Dada Satyapal Singh Sikarwar. Even the Gurjars, despite efforts by minister Aidal Singh Kansana, may not have significantly backed the BJP candidate,” the BJP leader said.