‘Aparajita’ Shukla In a significant setback for the ruling BJP in State, Forest Minister Ramniwas Rawat lost his home turf Vijaypur Assembly seat by 7,364 votes to the Congress candidate Mukesh Malhotra. Rawat, who had won the seat multiple times as a Congress candidate, switched allegiance to the BJP in 2024 and was appointed as the Forest Minister in the ruling Mohan Yadav-led BJP government. His appointment as Cabinet minister necessitated a by-election in the Vijaypur seat in Sheopur district. Rawat, once an old warhorse of the Congress, had previously secured multiple victories in the years; 1990, 1993, 2003, 2008, 2013, and 2023 on his home ground Vijaypur as a Congress candidate. On the other hand the BJP has retained the Budhni Assembly seats. The BJP candidate Ramakant Bhargava has emerged victorious after initial lagging with a margin of 13,091 votes against Rajkumar Patel of the Congress. The vote difference, however, is reduced by more than 91,000 from the previous elections.

 

The Budhni by-election was necessitated after former chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan vacated the seat post his Lok Sabha victory in June. Rajkumar Patel, who was ahead in the first two rounds of vote counting held on Saturday. The voting for both the seats took place on November 13 this year. Prompt came the reaction; fortified with allegations, from Jitu Patwari, the State unit head of Congress. He wrote on his X handle which reads; if roughly translated, that in contrast to the BJP’s efforts, including a dole out of fifty crore rupees to woo voters, the ruling party lost Vijaypur seat. “Vijaypur’s victory is a triumph for Congress workers who endured various forms of torturous tactics of the

 

BJP; including police baton charges and legal battles, yet remained steadfast (translated from Hindi),” Patwari stated in a post on X. He accused the entire system and officers including the district collector, Superintendent of Police and others. “The police and administration did work on behalf of BJP workers. Events fudged, false cases were filed against Congress supporters, and innocent people were jailed without assigning any reasons whatsoever. They made a futile attempt to dole out cash to the tune of Rs 50 crore to sway voters, yet the resilient Congress workers secured this victory,” Patwari asserted on X.

 

He concluded by dedicating this win as a victory for Babasaheb Ambedkar’s Constitution and the party workers. Five-term MLA Rawat began his political career with the Indian Youth Congress in 1986. He was first elected as an MLA from Vijaypur in 1990 and again in 1993. In 1993, he was appointed as a Cabinet Minister in the Digvijay Singh administration. Rawat continued his electoral success in Vijaypur, winning in 2003, 2008, and 2013. However, in the 2018 Assembly election, he narrowly lost by 2,890 votes. In the 2019 Lok Sabha election, he ran against Narendra Singh Tomar and was defeated by a margin of 1,13,341 votes in the Morena constituency. On April 30, Rawat turned defector and joined the BJP camp in the presence of the state Chief Minister, Mohan Yadav. He was sworn in as a minister in the Madhya Pradesh Cabinet on July 8, 2024. Shivraj Singh Chouhan, after an 18-year tenure as Madhya Pradesh’s Chief Minister was awarded the stewardship of Union agriculture ministry. The BJP opted for a new leader, Mohan Yadav in lieu.