Ex-Congress leader, BJP nominee for MP bypolls

Shivpuri, MP, May 31: The candidature of former Congress leader Ganesh Ram Gautam as the saffron party nominee in this Scindia fiefdom for an Assembly bypoll is causing heartburn among the rank and file of Madhya Pradesh's ruling BJP.

Campaigning for the June 2 polling, with 15 candidates -- including ten independents -- in the fray, formally draws to a close this evening.

After initial hiccups, the BJP cadre plunged into the campaign with Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and other BJP bigwigs holding several rounds of meetings to convince field workers about the strategy behind fielding an ex-Congress leader.

Shivpuri fell vacant due to the resignation of then state Tourism Minister Yashodhara Raje Scindia (BJP) following her election to the Lok Sabha from Gwalior in a bypoll.

The Congress fielded businessman Virendra Raghuvanshi, considered close to the high-profile party MP and Scindia scion Jyotiraditya, to take on his former party colleague.

Backwardness of this constituency, a pocket borough of the former Scindia royals, is evident from the fact that a local youth Ashok Kumar Yadav on Tuesday climbed a mobile communications tower and threatened to commit suicide, enacting a scene similar to one in the Hindi blockbuster 'Sholay', to press a demand for setting up factories in the area.

Candidature of a political turncoat sidelined other issues in the rather dull but peaceful campaigning. The Chief Minister, assisted by his cabinet colleagues and state BJP leaders, led the party campaign, while Mr Scindia remained the main canvasser for the Congress. Union ministers Suresh Pachouri and Sriprakash Jaiswal, besides Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit, joined the campaign trail.

After keeping away from earlier byelections in the state, saffron-clad Uma Bharti fielded her close associate Narendra Birthare as Bharatiya Janshakti nominee and was actively participating in the campaigning.

This urban-rural mix constituency has a 1,96,452-strong electorate including 91,271 women. Of the total 216 polling booths, 120 have been identified as sensitive.

Elaborate security arrangements have been made to ensure peaceful polling from 0700 to 1700 hrs. The Election Commission has urged voters to produce identity cards or any one of the 19 documents proving their identity.

In the presence of the Commission's observers, votes registered in EVMs will be counted at the Madhavrao Scindia Government P G College here from 0800 hrs on June 5, the Election Office said.

Besides Mr Gautam, Mr Raghuvanshi and Mr Birthare, prominent candidates are Ms Kavita Hazarilal Kotia (Samajwadi Party) and Mr Kailash Singh Rawat (Rashtriya Samanata Dal).

The independents are Mr Ajit Singh, Mr Aslam, Mr Girraj Koli, Mr Jagna Adivasi, Mr Jandel Singh Gurjar, Mr Dhaniram Parihar, Mr Brijesh Sharma, Dr Rakesh Samadhia Samrat, Mr M K Sharma and Mr Sant Kumar Sharma.

UNI