Cautious optimism gripping opposition

Bhopal, Dec 31: Cautious optimism is gripping the main opposition Congress in Madhya Pradesh, as the internal situation in the state might benefit it in forth coming assembly elections. After January 14, when the auspicious month commences, AICC Chief Sonia Gandhi might go for fine-tuning the party and Madhya Pradesh would be on her agenda.

Taking up different issues with a bang, shows that Madhya Pradesh Congress is working on the line of early elections in the state. The coming year would be election year for the state and almost all the political parties have planned their strategies to bag maximum number of seats. After having won the prestigious Khargone Lok Sabha by-election for his son Arun, State Congress President Subhash Yadav seems to be firm in the saddle, but his fate is likely to be decided soon. If he is not replaced, some other strategy would be adopted and state executive body would be announced.

After having lost Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh is the biggest state in Hindiland which the AICC would take seriously. The assembly elections are scheduled in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh in November 2008. Almost al the senior leaders including AICC general Secretary Digvijay Singh, Union ministers Kamal Nath, Arjun Singh and Suresh Pachouri, Subhash Yadav and AICC Secretary Satyavrat Chaturvedi seem to be interested in taking hold of the political situation.

All eyes are on AICC Chief Sonia Gandhi, whether she will go for young leadership or states co would be maintained with Subhash. It is also expected that Sonia might like to go for tried and tested Digvijay Singh, who has also showed his importance in the political scenario, in the coming elections. Amid signals that the BJP’s twin victories in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh elections would not directly impact on Madhya Pradesh's poll perspective, the BJP has accelerated its preparation for the polls. The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), which altered its strategy in neighbouring Uttar Pradesh and assumed the reins with upper castes' support, may adopt that very strategy in this state and it will be a formidable challenge for both the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and main opposition Congress to respond to the Mayawati factor.

Observers feel that in the situation if fresh delimitation takes place, the changed nature of several constituencies would also affect the poll arithmetic of the two principal parties. Several BJP and Congress bigwigs' constituencies would be affected by delimitation-- that includes about half-a-dozen BJP ministers. Though the total number of constituencies would remain unchanged at 230, the number of seats reserved for Scheduled Castes (SC) would go up to 36 from 33 while the corresponding number for Scheduled Tribes would be 47, up from 41. Turning the pages of Madhya Pradesh's electoral history reveals that bipolar politics ruled the roost here for the past five decades. In the late eighties, the BSP did show it prowess in areas bordering Uttar Pradesh but the BSP effect did not spread to other parts of this state.