Shivraj misses Mission-29 by whisker in MP, Congress routed

BHOPAL: Barely five months after its humiliating rout in assembly elections, Congress was again swept away by the saffron surge that missed Shivraj Singh Chouhan's much-hyped Mission-29 by a whisker.

The unprecedented tally of 27 seats could mean an enhanced stature for Chouhan in the BJP hierarchy and an uninterrupted stint at the helm of Madhya Pradesh, despite his known proximity to the Advani camp. On the other hand, Congress after being relegated to becoming a handmaiden of the 'Gang of Five' — Digvijay Singh, Kamal Nath, Jyotiradiya Scindia, Suresh Pachouri and Ajay Singh — is left with a distraught cadre and its worst career crisis.

Though veteran Kamal Nath bagged Chhindwara for the ninth time and Scindia managed to retain his family bastion, Guna, both proved to be hard-earned victories. If the defeat of current MPCC president Arun Yadav and his predecessor Kantilal Bhuria mirrored popular anger against Congress satraps, the big thrashing to Meenakshi Natrajan, a Rahul Gandhi favourite, is interpreted as a clear rejection of Congress vice-president and his brand of "elite and erratic politics".

And as a beaming Chouhan raises the victory sign, he's safe in the knowledge that the unparalleled performance will put an end to talk of bete noire Uma Bharati waiting in wings. The report card, his camp believes, will melt away whatever reservation PM-in-waiting Narendra Modi may have nursed ever since Advani publicly projected him as a better deserving PM candidate.

His loyalists dissociate Shivraj with defeat in Chindwara and Guna. Modi addressed more than a dozen rallies, but cancelled Chhindwara trip and Sushma Swaraj walked out of the Shivpuri rally in a huff after the candidate failed to turn up to welcome her. If only they had stuck to the original plan, MP 'script could have been different', said one of them.

However, the dismal showing by Congress could nix Digvijay's grandiose plans of a second coming in his home state. He's accused of sabotage in Bhind and the crushing defeat of his nominee in pocket borough Rajgarh has left Congress trouble-shooter red-faced. So the safe perch among elders in the Upper House, would be a better option than facing deeply suspicious and ill-disposed cadre and colleagues here.

As for Ajay Singh, former leader of Opposition in the state and son of former chief minister Arjun Singh, his defeat would definitely cast a cloud over his political future.