Datia (Madhya Pradesh) [India], July 18 (ANI): Senior BJP leader and former Madhya Pradesh Home Minister Narottam Mishra on Saturday exuded confidence over the party’s prospects in the upcoming Datia Assembly by-election, claiming that the ruling BJP would register a comfortable victory.
Speaking to reporters, Mishra said the preparations for the Datia bypoll were progressing well, and they would win the seat with around 20,000 votes.
“Preparations are going well. Those who wanted to join the BJP have already done so. The BJP has not sent invitations asking anyone to join… BJP will win with around 20,000 votes here,” Mishra said.
Meanwhile, Congress leader Abdhesh Nayak, who left the BJP and joined the Congress ahead of the 2023 Assembly poll, claimed that the Congress candidate would win the Datia bypoll by over 25,000 votes.
Nayak also denied rumours that he was planning to quit the Congress party, alleging that the BJP had spread “misleading propaganda” after he remained inactive in the campaign for a few days.
“I could not remain active in the election campaign for a few days. Reports of my displeasure started circulating, and the Bharatiya Janata Party quickly spread the misleading narrative that I was leaving the Congress. I never even thought of doing that. Since the party workers associated with me had faced disappointment for the second time (as he was denied ticket during the 2023 assembly poll as well as now in the bypoll), it was natural that they and my family were upset. It took some time to convince them,” Nayak told reporters.
He further said that State Congress President Jitu Patwari played a very important role in convincing the supporters. He personally met the family and assured them that their responsibility was his responsibility.
“After that, we explained everything to everyone and decided that we would continue working for the Congress. We will work with full strength. We will strive to repeat the kind of result we achieved in 2023 assembly polls. Nobody should fall for the BJP’s misleading propaganda or become part of its conspiracy. Our candidate is an excellent and honest candidate. He is a simple and humble person. We know him well…We will win the Datia by-election by a margin of over 25,000 votes under Patwari’s leadership,” Nayak added.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has fielded Ashutosh Tiwari, while the Congress party announced Ghanshyam Singh as its candidate for the Datia by-elections.
Polling for the Datia Assembly bypoll will be held on July 30, while counting of votes will take place on August 3. The seat fell vacant after Congress MLA Rajendra Bharti was disqualified following his conviction in a fraud case. (ANI)
