Congress satraps in Madhya Pradesh might just be pretending to fall in line with the guidelines set by party vice president Rahul Gandhi for distribution of tickets in the Assembly elections scheduled later this year, since they have found a way out to oblige their camp followers out to get tickets by all means, fair or foul.
Sources within the State Congress, on condition of anonymity, said senior party leaders were just showing that they were strictly following the All India Congress Committee (AICC) guidelines for ticket distribution, but in reality they were not ready to buy the party line as it would bring about an end of their influence. So, they have come up with a unique formula that would not only maintain their clout and at the same time would be in conformity with the party guidelines. The new formula adopted by these leaders is that they have asked the block Congress committees (BCCs) and district Congress committees (DCCs) and other organisational bodies under their influence to pass a resolution authorising them to take a final call for distribution of tickets, they added.
Similar resolutions were passed by the Raghogarh BCC and Rajgarh DCC on Wednesday authorising Congress general secretary and former Chief Minister Digvijay Singh to take a final call on distribution of tickets for all the Assembly constituencies coming under them. A similar resolution has been passed in the areas of influence of Union Ministers Jyotiraditya Scindia and Kamalnath authorising them to take a decision on distribution of tickets in the Assembly constituencies under their influence.
Notably, Rahul Gandhi during his visit to the State last month made it clear to the party cadres that no leader could get tickets for them, as only those aspirants would be considered for ticket who would find place in the panel formed after report of AICC and MPCC observers. Congress general secretary Digvijay Singh last week told the aspirants who called on him at his residence in Bhopal to follow the procedure set up by Rahul Gandhi.
"Neither can I get ticket for you nor can any other leader; better go to your respective constituencies where AICC and PCC observers are doing surveys, put up your claim before them so that your names can be included in the panel formed by them after taking local opinion. It is the report of these observers and the PCC observers that will matter," he had said.