Narottam Mishra skips BJP meeting on Datia bypoll defeat, fueling speculation

Narottam Mishra, a prominent leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Madhya Pradesh and former home minister, conspicuously skipped a party review meeting Tuesday. The meeting was convened to analyze the BJP's unexpected defeat in the Datia assembly byelection, sparking speculation about Mishra's influence on the electoral outcome and his standing within the party.

The meeting, held at Chief Minister Mohan Yadav's residence in Bhopal, took place a day after the Congress candidate Ghanshyam Singh secured victory over the BJP's Ashutosh Tiwari by a margin of 6,016 votes. Mishra's absence was particularly noted as he was present in Bhopal at the time of the meeting. The Datia contest had been treated as a high-stakes battle by the BJP, drawing significant campaign efforts from at least 12 ministers, a deputy chief minister, six members of Parliament, and numerous senior party officials.

Sources within the party suggest that Mishra's exclusion from the electoral fray by not being given a ticket might have played a role in the defeat. A senior party leader, speaking anonymously, indicated that the decision not to field Mishra, once considered the BJP's dominant figure in Datia, suggests his role is also under scrutiny, especially considering the reactions from his supporters when he was denied the ticket.

Mishra himself declined to comment when approached by the press. Kailash Vijayvargiya, another senior BJP leader, avoided direct questions about Mishra's absence but announced the formation of a two-member committee tasked with examining the causes of the party's defeat in the Datia bypoll.

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The decision to not call Mishra, once considered the BJP’s strongman in Datia, suggests his role is also under question, especially given the reactions of his supporters when he was denied a ticket.