Supporters of former Madhya Pradesh home minister and BJP leader Narottam Mishra held protests on Friday and Saturday over the ruling party’s decision to nominate Ashutosh Tiwari as its candidate for the upcoming Datia assembly by-election, replacing Mishra, who had contested and lost the seat in 2023.
Congress leader Rajendra Bharti had defeated Mishra, who was the state's home minister at the time, by more than 7,500 votes in the 2023 assembly elections. However, in April this year, a Delhi court sentenced Bharti to three years in prison in a cheating case, resulting in his disqualification as an MLA and necessitating a by-election. He was later granted bail.
The decision to field Tiwari for the by-election came as a major disappointment for Mishra, who was fully expecting to be chosen as the candidate and had already bought a nomination form, according to party sources. More than 3,000 protesters blocked the NH-44 for nearly 12 hours, leaving the Datia superintendent of police and several other police personnel injured before security forces moved in to clear the highway and detain some of the demonstrators.
One supporter stated that they would not withdraw their protest unless "Narottam Dada" was handed the ticket, adding that they were prepared to quit the BJP over the issue.
Datia collector Swapnil Wankhede told reporters that angry supporters blocked the national highway for nearly 11 to 12 hours. Despite repeated requests to clear the road, they reportedly threw stones at the police, forcing officers to fire tear-gas shells to disperse the crowd. He added that the Datia SP, alongside other senior officers and police personnel, sustained injuries during the violence, and that the protesters also damaged police vehicles and other passing transport.
Datia SP Mayur Khandelwal confirmed that more than 3,000 protesters disrupted law and order in Datia town, attempted to force markets to close, and maintained the road blockade for nearly half a day. He noted that over six police personnel were injured in the stone-pelting. The police had tried to pacify them by citing the enforcement of the model code of conduct in the town, but after the crowd refused to back down and turned violent, officers had to use tear gas to regain control of the situation. Some protesters were arrested and warned that strict action would follow if they resorted to violence again.
Following Friday's developments, several party office-bearers, including the district unit president and local corporators, resigned from the BJP in protest.
The Election Commission recently announced the schedule for by-elections to three assembly constituencies across the country, including Datia, with the other two seats located in Bihar and Gujarat. The BJP officially named Ashutosh Tiwari as its candidate for Datia on Friday, triggering the anger among Mishra's followers. Polling is scheduled to take place on 30 July, with the counting of votes set for August 3.
Also read: ECI issues notification for bypolls in MP, Bihar, Gujarat
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