MP Lok Sabha Election 2024: The Ratlam-Jhabua Lok Sabha tribal seat was one of the three seats in Madhya Pradesh the BJP initially deemed vulnerable and believed that registering win here was not an easy task. Congress's prominent tribal leader, Kantilal Bhuria, a five-time Lok Sabha member from this constituency, posed a significant challenge.
Consequently, the BJP focused on this seat from the outset. Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the party's campaign in Madhya Pradesh from Ratlam and returned to Jhabua during the campaign. To bolster the BJP's prospects, meetings with all major state leaders were organized.
BJP's strategy to split voters
To defeat Bhuria, the BJP nominated Anita Nagar Singh Chauhan, the Alirajpur Panchayat President, as their candidate to split the voters base in his stronghold of Jhabua-Alirajpur. Feedback received post-voting suggests that the BJP views this strategy as successful, believing the division of votes occurred as intended.
Additionally, through Petlawad MLA Minister Nirmala Bhuria, the party was able to make inroads into Kantilal Bhuria's traditional vote bank in Jhabua district. The BJP's morale has been boosted by the high voter turnout (72.86 percent) for the Ratlam-Jhabua Lok Sabha seat, interpreting it as a positive sign. The true effectiveness of the BJP's strategy will be revealed with the election results.
Bhuria confident of his sixth victory
On the other hand, Congress candidate Kantilal Bhuria is confident of securing his sixth victory in the Ratlam seat. There appeared to be no signs of dissatisfaction or opposition within the party, as everyone participated in the campaign with solidarity. His son, Vikrant Bhuria, and his team of young supporters were actively campaigning for him right up until voting day. Vikrant faced displeasure from senior Congress leaders and even lost his position as State Youth Congress President for staying in his father's parliamentary constituency. However, with Kantilal Bhuria's credibility on the stake in this election, Vikrant remained by his side.
It is noteworthy that Kantilal Bhuria faced defeat in the 2019 elections due to overconfidence, losing to Guman Singh Damor, a bureaucrat-turned-politician and new BJP candidate. He had lost in 2014 as well.
Bhuria encountered challenges during campaigning
Despite his hard work, Bhuria encountered significant challenges during campaigning this time. During the campaign, many Congress sarpanch leaders from the Ratlam parliamentary constituency defected to the BJP. Additionally, the Bharatiya Adivasi Party fielded Balusingh Gamad from Ratlam, adding to the competition. The absence of senior state leaders left Bhuria and his son to fend for themselves. Now, they await the vote count on June 4 to see the outcome of their efforts.
No comments:
Post a Comment