Bhopal: Madhya Pradesh’s ruling BJP on Sunday suffered another jolt in the poll-bound state as senior politician Dhruv Pratap Singh, who has been associated with the party since its inception, quit, accusing BJP state leadership of sidelining him.
Singh, who was with the BJP since 1980, in a video message, alleged that the party has derailed from its real principles.
Since the last couple of months, he has been vocal against Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, state unit President V. D. Sharma and other state leaders.
He had contested his first election from Katni Murwara seat, however, he was defeated by the Congress. In 2003, the BJP had fielded him from Vijayraghogarh (Katni district) and he won against Congress candidate Satyendra Pathak.
In 2014, Pathak’s son Sanjay Pathak, who was also a MLA from Vijayraghogarh, joined the BJP and since then, Singh has been sidelined.
On the other hand, Pathak, who was also a minister in CM Chouhan’s previous cabinet, has strengthened his position not only in Katni district but among the top leaders of the BJP as well.
Pathak is considered close to the State Home Minister Narottam Mishra and the duo had played a key role against the Kamal Nath-led Congress government, which was toppled due to the defection of 22 Jyotiraditya Scindia loyalist MLAs in March 2020.
Sources told IANS that Singh has been in touch with senior state Congress leaders and is most likely to join the party in the next couple of days during a visit to Bhopal.
However, state BJP leaders were still trying to convince him to remain with the BJP as his shifting into Congress will impact the party largely.
