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MP Congress may drop 'tainted' ministers

While the final list of Congress candidates for the November 25 election to the Madhya Pradesh Legislative Assembly is yet to be announced, there is a strong possibility that ministers against whom the lok ayukta (a sort of ombudsman) has registered cases may be denied tickets.

Congress sources said the party had adopted a strict stand and decided not to give tickets even to legislators facing criminal charges.

Besides, there is a likelihood of the constituencies of some ministers being changed.

Legislators in whose constituencies the Congress suffered defeat in the 1998 Lok Sabha elections may also be denied tickets.

Claiming that special attention would be paid to the youth and women while selecting candidates, the sources said Chief Minister Digvijay Singh and Industry and Commerce Minister Narendra Nahta were thinking of changing their constituencies.

While Singh is planning to contest from Raghogarh instead of Chachauda, both in Guna district, Nahta plans to change to Mandsaur from Manasa.

Sources said former chief minister Shyama Charan Shukla is likely to contest from Rajim (Raipur) and state Congress president Urmila Singh from Dhanasor.

Stating that Congress stalwarts S C Shukla and Arjun Singh were keen to field their sons from Basna and Churhat respectively, sources said some former parliamentarians, including Rameshwar Neekhra, Pratap Bhanu Sharma, Pawan Deewan, and Vishweshwar Bhagat may also contest.

Neekhra may get the ticket for Pipariya, Sharma for Shamshabd, Deewan for Mahasamund, and Bhagat for Balaghat, the sources said.

UNI

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