Not the first time: Scindia voices dissent over MP govt's flood survey

Scindia voices disenchantment

Congress leader Jyotiraditya Scindia (pictured) has expressed his unhappiness over the Madhya Pradesh government’s survey of crops destroyed by rain and flood. This is not the first time that Scindia has gone public against his own party or the state government. First, he disagreed with his party position on the reading down of Article 370. Later, when ego clashes within the party’s state unit made media headlines, he advised Chief Minister Kamal Nath to address members’ concerns and settle their differences. Evidently, Scindia wants a bigger say in party affairs. But sources say Nath and former chief minister Digvijaya Singh, who is also general secretary of the All India Congress Committee, are determined to keep him out of state politics. 

Disillusioned Congress

The Assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh are about two and a half years away and the leadership crisis facing the Congress seems to be becoming worse. It has left senior leaders and cadres disillusioned. Now UP Congress Vice-President Siraj Mehdi, who is also the minorities wing chief, has written to the general secretary in charge of UP, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, airing his disenchantment with the state of affairs in the party. Mehdi, a former legislator, said while the BJP cadres had started preparing for the 2022 polls, the Congress was merely fighting through Twitter and newspapers. He also talked of the alleged sidelining of state leaders more than 50 years old.

Flood challenge

This is the kind of challenge the Congress is known to face. After the Prime Minister tweeted about the travails of Bihar following the recent floods, many BJP leaders in Karnataka started questioning why the party that was in power at the Centre and in Karnataka did not show the same concern for the flood-hit state for two months. It's 60 days since the floods affected 22 districts in Karnataka. On Friday, the Centre approved an additional financial assistance of about ~2,000 crore for Karnataka and Bihar. BJP MLA Basanagouda Patil Yatnal told a news channel that he feared his party would lose its standing with the dominant Lingayat community in the state because of the government’s alleged lack of concern. Following his outburst, he received a show-cause notice from the party's disciplinary committee.