BJP fields Ashutosh Tiwari for Datia bypoll in MP; Narottam Mishra's supporters protest

Bhopal, Jul 10 (PTI) The ruling BJP on Friday announced the candidature of Ashutosh Tiwari for the July 30 Datia assembly byelection in Madhya Pradesh, sparking off a protest by the supporters of senior party leader Narottam Mishra. The decision came as a setback for former minister Mishra who, according to party sources, expected the ticket and had even purchased a nomination form. Tiwari, a resident of Sevda town in Datia, has been active in the state BJP organisation, the sources said. An elated Tiwari told reporters outside the state BJP office that he met senior party leaders and expressed his gratitude. "Mishra is a very senior leader, my guardian, and he said he will campaign for me and the party," Tiwari said. But in Datia, Mishra's supporters staged a protest, blocking the national highway. Balram, one of the supporters, told PTI Videos that some of them took off their shirts and lay on the road while others staged a sit-in. They would not relent until "Narottam Dada" got the ticket and would even quit the BJP, another supporter said. Congress leader Rajendra Bharti had defeated then home minister Mishra from Datia by over 7,500 votes in the 2023 assembly elections. However, a Delhi court sentenced Bharti to three years' imprisonment in a cheating case in April this year, leading to his disqualification as an MLA and necessitating a byelection. He subsequently got bail. The Election Commission of India recently announced the schedule for bypolls to three assembly constituencies in the country including Datia. The other two seats are in Bihar and Gujarat. While votes will be cast on July 30, the results will be announced on August 3, as per the schedule. PTI MAS KRK