BJP tries to tie down Digvijay

In a move to "tie down" Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Digvijay Singh in Raghogarh, his home constituency, the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) central election committee has named national general secretary Shivraj Singh Chauhan for the seat.

The high-profile contest in Raghogarh would upset the campaign schedule of Digvijay Singh, whose skills of "political management" in the elections would be considerably blunted in the new situation, said a BJP senior leader.

Chauhan is an emerging leader of the other backward caste (OBC) in the state and has been representing Vidisha Lok Sabha seats since 1991. Cha-uhan is also known for his aggressive political profile.

The decision came as a surprise even in the BJP, which considers Raghogarh as "pocket borough" of Digvijay Singh.

"We have decided to put up a formidable challenge and tie him down politically," said BJP general secretary Pramod Mahajan, while announcing the first list of 137 BJP candidates for Madhya Pradesh.

The party has also decided to put up Uma Bharti from Bara Mallara Assembly seat, considered to be stronghold of Lodhis, the caste Bharti belongs to. The decision is aimed at neutralising the campaign that Bharti would be foisted upon as the chief minister if the BJP wins.

At a day-long meeting held at Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's residence, the poll committee cleared the first list, which comprised 58 sitting legislators.

Unlike the Congress, which has changed some sitting MLAs to avoid the anti-incumbency factor, the BJP appears to have retained all sitting MLAs.

Keeping in mind the caste composition of the state, the BJP has fielded a number of OBC, Schedule Caste and Scheduled Tribes candidates. "This has been done to project the BJP's pro-backward image," said a BJP leader.

To prevent dissidence, the BJP has also nominated some close relatives of state party unit leaders. For instance, senior BJP leader Kailash Joshi was neutralised by offering his son a ticket.

"We are giving tickets only to BJP workers without considering their relationships with any one," Mahajan remarked.

The party's strategy seems to be targetting Digvijay Singh to demoralise the Congress cadre. But, according to a BJP leader, nomination of Shivraj Singh Chauhan is guided by the strategy to win over OBCs in essentially a Thakur-dominated constituency.

Given the loyalty Digvijay Singh enjoys of Thakurs, his castemen, the BJP found it convenient to mobilise OBCs and Scheduled Tribes to nail the Madhya Pradesh chief minister on his home turf and enlarge the party's base.