MP Election 2023: Ex-PM's Nephew Anup Mishra To Get Former BJP MLA Narayan Singh Kushwah's Ticket From Gwalior?

Gwalior (Madhya Pradesh): With elections barely a month away, infighting and confusion among the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) has been making headlines every other day. In the same series, there are reports suggesting a tiff between former minister Narayan Singh Kushwah and the saffron party over ticket from Gwalior South Assembly constituency. There is a speculation that this time, in place of Kushwaha, nephew of Atal Bihari Vajpayee-- Anup Mishra might get ticket from Gwalior South.

Mishra has been announcing even before getting the ticket that he will contest the elections. 

Worried Kushwah rushed to state capital for discussions. And returned last night. However, he termed the discussions about him joining Congress as baseless. 

Narayan Singh Kushwah won the election from Gwalior South Assembly constituency in 2003 and 2013 and was also a minister in the Shivraj government. But, in 2018 he lost the election to Praveen Pathak of Congress by a narrow margin of just 121 votes. Seeing Kushwah's good influence among the backward classes, the party gave him the post of state president of BJP Backward Class Morcha.

Samiksha Gupta, another contender

After Kushwah's defeat, many BJP leaders became contenders from Gwalior South seat. Anup Mishra, nephew of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, who had lost the last election from Bhitarwar, had declared his candidature from this seat three months ago. Anup has already won a fight from here once in 1998. 

Apart from Mishra, there is also the name of former Mayor Samiksha Gupta. Samiksha had rebelled against the party in 2018 after not getting the ticket and had contested as an independent candidate. She could not win but she decreased the BJP's votes. Due to which BJP lost the elections in its traditional stronghold. However, BJP later canceled Samiksha Gupta's expulsion from the party. Now she is also a strong contender from the South seat.

Narayan Kushwah is aware that his ticket is in danger. In a statement two months ago, he had given a clear indication of his future strategy by openly challenging the party. He had said that Samiksha Gupta had rebelled and defeated the party, due to which BJP could not form the government in the state for the fourth time. Now if the party gives Gupta a ticket then he will not campaign for BJP. 

'Not joining Congress'

Kushwah was in Bhopal on Thursday. There was a meeting in the evening to brainstorm the tickets for the assembly election. But before that, Kushwah left Bhopal by train. However, after reaching Gwalior, he told the media that who will get the ticket is being considered and the party will decide on it.

When Narayan Kushwah was asked to react to the speculations that he might revolt and join the Congress if he was not given the ticket, he said, “Where did this thing come from? This is all wrong.” 

On returning from Bhopal, he said that he had gone to Bhopal for Backward Class Morcha work.