Three ministers of Shivraj cabinet were defeated in by-elections whose results were declared on Tuesday. They include state women and child development minister Imarti Devi who contested from Dabra.
Name of PHE minister Aidal Singh Kansana also came as a shock. He contested from Sumaoli. Giriraj Singh Dandotiya who contested from Dimani also lost to his nearest Congress rival.
Imarti Devi lost to her daughter’s father-in-law Suresh Raje of Congress by a margin of about 2,000 votes. Her defeat came as a surprise because reference to her as an “item” by Kamal Nath during election campaign had become a big issue.
Similarly, minister of state for agriculture, Girraj Dandotiya also shot to limelight after he retaliated on Kamal Nath’s item remark. He had said, “Such a remark (item) made in his constituency would have led to bloodshed”. Dandotiya was also served notice by Election Commission. He was defeated by his Congress rival Ravindra Singh Tomar by a margin of more than 21,000 votes.
In Sumaoli, minister Aidal Singh Kansana lost to his Congress rival Ajab Singh Kushwah by a margin of about 10,000 votes. Sumaoli constituency had witnessed violence during election campaign including firing on the polling day.
