After the opinion of former chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on the selection of candidate from Ratlam-Jhabua parliamentary seat, BJP selection committee may further delay the final selection of the candidate for this parliamentary seat. According to highly placed sources in BJP, former chief minister Chouhan is said to have made strong recommendation that sitting MLA from Jhabua assembly seat GS Damor should continue as MLA as in case the party wins the parliamentary elections from Ratlam-Jhabua then Jhabua assembly seat will have to be vacated and at present every assembly seat is important for the party in view of thin majority of Congress government and secondly there is no certainty that party may repeat its performance from Jhabua assembly seat in by-elections if held .
BJP seems to be in dilemma as to who should be the party candidate from Ratlam-Jhabua parliamentary seat and it seems to be taking all aspects before declaring final name of its candidate. BJP’s reliable sources said that after a survey by the BJP and seeking opinion of the sitting MLAs of BJP from Ratlam-Jhabua parliamentary area, the name of GS Damor had emerged prominently but since as per BJP reliable sources former chief minister Chouhan opined otherwise hence BJP may further delay declaring the final name of the candidate from Ratlam-Jhabua parliamentary seat.
Polling for the Ratlam-Jhabua parliamentary seat is to take place on May 19 and election process including filing of the nomination papers will commence from April 21. On Monday, when district BJP president Rajendra Singh Lunera was asked about the possibility of any outsider tribal leader to be fielded this time, he replied that candidate will be from parliamentary seat only but since panel names have been sent by Ratlam ,Jhabua and Alirajpur districts BJP units, decision is to be taken by the party high command as to who will be party candidate from Ratlam-Jhabua keeping in consideration all important aspects .
But he said that BJP is fully prepared to pose big challenge before Congress and to emerge victorious. Meanwhile, political observers said BJP election committee appeared to be considering all aspects so that candidate of the party derives the benefit from the BJP’s increased base in the tribal belt of this parliamentary seat. Though, the electoral base of the BJP has improved in tribal belt but it always faced challenge in selecting the candidate in parliamentary elections.
When in 2014 BJP’s Dilip Singh Bhuria won the parliament elections it was being presumed that BJP has now got stability in selecting the candidate so far as parliament elections are concerned but with the untimely death of Dilip Singh Bhuria the seat fell vacant and in the by-elections held in 2015 it gave a chance to Congress to snatch the seat.
BJP fielded Relam Chauhan in the parliament elections of 1991 and again had to repeat her in the 2004 parliament elections and both the times she was defeated. Dilip Singh Bhuria won the parliament elections from this seat as Congress candidate five times but when he was fielded as BJP candidate in 1998 and in 1999 he was defeated at the hands of Congress. That is why BJP had to again field Relam Chauhan in 2004, who had lost in 1991.
In 2009 parliament elections again BJP fielded Dilip Singh Bhuria but likewise 1998 and 1999 elections for the third time he could not win as BJP candidate. It was only in 2014 parliament elections when history was created on this tribal seat when BJP for the first time won the seat defeating Congress but this celebration could not continue for the whole term as death of Dilip Singh Bhuria gave chance to Congress to snatch its traditional seat and it succeeded, even BJP fielded Dilip Singh Bhuria’s daughter and former MLA Nirmala Bhuria.
Thus, selection of candidate from Ratlam-Jhabua parliamentary seat always remained a difficult task for the BJP and this time too in 2019 when waiting period of the declaration of the name of BJP candidate from Ratlam-Jhabua is much longer.
