PM may unveil MP’s longest tunnel in December
Having visited MP twice in three weeks, PM Narendra Modi could soon visit the state again in December to inaugurate the state’s longest tunnel connecting Rewa and Sidhi districts. The PM was recently in the state on September 17 to unveil the cheetah relocation project and on October 11, to unveil Mahakal Lok Corridor. As Union Home and Cooperatives minister Amit Shah is also slated to be in Gwalior and Bhopal on October 16. Visits by PM Modi, Shah and other senior BJP leaders are likely to become a frequent affair this year, aimed at the 2023 assembly polls.
BJP sweeps bypoll in Chhindwara
Congress suffered a big setback in the recent urban local by-elections held on September 27, in Chhindwara, when out of six local bodies, BJP won four. Chhindwara is also considered Congress MP Kamal Nath’s citadel. While, Nath has won the Lok Sabha seat nine times in the past by Nath and once by his wife Alka, his son Nakul at present the Congress MP from the same seat. All seven assembly seats of Chhindwara were won by Nath led Congress in 2018 polls. Not only did Congress suffer drubbing against BJP in four local bodies of Chhindwara, but also lost in most other local bodies which went to polls on September 27. Importantly, Congress had won 30 out of 47 tribal reserved assembly seats in 2018 polls and is keenly eyeing those seats to return to power in 2023.
Diggy’s son calls Scindia ‘panauti’
The decade-long feud between Scindia’s and Digvijaya Singh’s family has now permeated to the second generation. At a Congress meeting in Bhopal on Wednesday, Singh’s son MLA Jaivardhan Singh dubbed Union Minister and BJP MP Jyotiraditya Scindia a ‘panauti’ (bad omen). Hailing the historic triumph of Congress in July mayoral elections in Gwalior, Jaivardhan said Congress won after 57 years “because our ‘panauti’, Jyotiraditya Scindia joined the BJP.” This is possibly the first time that the ex-MP has publicly ridiculed Scindia, whose departure from Congress in March 2020 led to the collapse of the 15-month-old Kamal Nath government.
Anuraag singh
Our correspondent in Madhya Pradesh
singhanuraag.journo@gmail.com