How a booklet on Vyapam helped BJP win the Madhya Pradesh local bodies' election

NEW DELHI: Apprehensive of a backlash from the Vyapam scam in the run-up to the recently concluded local bodies’ elections, the office of Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan oversaw the preparation of a booklet that pinned the blame for the controversy primarily on the Congress and enumerated the steps taken by the BJP government to ensure a free and fair probe into the matter.

The literature was distributed widely among the electorate and seems to have been a contributing factor in helping the BJP win eight out of ten Nagar Palika seats. “The booklets described how the Vyapam scam began and what steps Chouhan took to deal with it. The CM was not happy that one of his cabinet colleagues involved in the scam had to be arrested but he accepted it as probity is important. One of his personal assistants, Prem Kumar, was also arrested in the scam but Chouhan did not try to influence the investigation,” a BJP leader said.

The booklets also underline that Chouhan asked for a SIT probe which was being monitored by the High Court and this was moving in the right direction. It further said the BJP government was always in favour of a CBI probe but did not want to suggest it on its own as this would have undermined the authority of the High Court.

Congress charges against Chouhan and others in the case were baseless and politically motivated, the literature distributed among the electorate said.

Health Minister Narrottam Mishra and Transport Minister Bhupendra Singh spearheaded the BJP campaign in the local bodies’ elections. Around 25 lakh people voted in these elections to the ten Nagar Palikas.