BHOPAL: From cabinet expansion to the appointments in the state BJP working committee and now allocation of districts to the ministers, BJP Rajya Sabha member Jyotiraditya Scindia has successfully managed to proceed on his terms in the saffron party during last one year after BJP came to power toppling the Kamal Nath-led Congress government.
Scindia also managed to hold his influence in the Gwalior-Chambal region as minister in-charge appointed in these districts were his trusted lieutenants.
The list of in-charge ministers of the districts declared on Wednesday night revealed that Scindia has a one-sided hold in the Gwalior-Chambal divisions. In all important districts, including the home turfs Guna and Shivpuri, Scindia loyalists, who had left Congress to join the BJP, have been given the command to decide the development of the area and placements in the government machinery.
In Gwalior district, Scindia’s trusted aide and water resources minister Tulsiram Silwat has been assigned responsibility. In other three districts including Guna, which Scindia represented in the Lok Sabha for almost 17 years, loyalists of the royal scion have been given the charge.
Cabinet minister Pradyuman Singh Tomar has been made in-charge of Guna and Ashoknagar districts while, panchayat minister Mahendra Singh Sisodia has been assigned responsibility of Shivpuri district.
Apart from Gwalior division, Scindia will have a say in Bhind and Damoh districts where transport minister Govind Singh Rajput has been appointed the in-charge minister. In Dhar and Sehore, Scindia loyalist and health minister Prabhuram Chaudhary has been assigned the responsibility.
Scindia’s entrusted lieutenant Rajyawardhan Singh Dattigaon has been assigned the charge of Mandsaur and Alirajpur districts, Brijendra Singh Yadav given the charge of Shajapur, Suresh Dhakad of Datia and OPS Bhadoria of Ratlam district.
Sources said that during previous Congress rule, the Maharaja had his say in the Gwalior-Chambal divisions, known as the citadel of Scindia and even senior Congress leaders like Kamal Nath and Digvijaya Singh never used to interfere in the district matters. However, duringpolicy decisions taken by the Congress government there was a perception that Scindia was not being given that much prominence as he enjoyed earlier.
In BJP, Scindia has so far won a good deal from the saffron government. Before by-polls he managed to get tickets to all 25 defective MLAs. After by-polls, he successfully managed to get 12 ministerial posts in the Shivraj Singh Chouhan government and also secured a Rajya Sabha seat for himself in June, although the Modi cabinet’s much-anticipated ministerial position is still for him. BJP leaders though explained that all terms set by Scindia, like giving tickets to all those who left the Congress with him, were accepted before the elections.
Taking a dig at the recent developments in BJP government, Congress said that Scindia seems to be enjoying the deal too much. “The list of in-charge ministers of Gwalior, Guna, Ahoknagar, Bhind, Datia, Shivpuri and Damoh makes clear that the chief minister has settled scores with all senior colleagues from Narendra Singh Tomar, Prahlad Singh Patel, VD Sharma, Narottam Mishra, Vivek Shejwalkar, KP Yadav to Jaibhan Singh Pawaiya and Anup Mishra. It seems that the chief minister has handed over the entire region to Scindia. The `Bikau’ are in profit while all `Tikau’ were cheated,” said Congress state spokesperson Narendra Saluja.
View More | Source: Times of India