BHOPAL: An FIR has been registered against three Congress leaders, including former Chief Minister Digvijaya Singh, accusing them of sharing an old video of Ramniwas Rawat, BJP candidate for the bypoll to Vijaypur Assembly seat in Madhya Pradesh.
A written complaint was filed at a police station in Sheopur district by Arvind Singh, a Sheopur-based BJP leader. He alleged that the Congress leaders have shared a six-year-old video of Rawat in an attempt to tarnish his image.
Besides Digvijaya Singh, Arvind Singh has also named the Leader of the Opposition (LoP) Umang Singhar and Deputy LoP Hemant Katare in his complaint to the police. Singh claimed the trio of Congress leaders shared the Rawat's video on their social media accounts on Friday.
"Trio Congress leaders have been booked under Section 223 of BNS- 2023, which accounts for one-month imprisonment or a fine of Rs 200, " a police official said.
Madhya Pradesh BJP chief V. D. Sharma, responding on the matter, said Congress has nothing to challenge the BJP candidate in the bypoll, which is why; they have come up with an old video.
"If they (Congress) have courage, fight the bypoll on development issue, but they won't do it, because they have nothing to challenge BJP candidate Ramniwas Rawat. These types of activities are taking the Congress down day by day, " Sharma added.
In the video, Ramniwas Rawat is being heard arguing with someone and saying don't give him a vote.
Interestingly, senior leader Ramniwas Rawat has won six Assembly elections on a Congress ticket between 1990 and 2023. He resigned from the Congress and from the state Assembly after winning the Assembly elections held in November last year.
Rawat joined the BJP during the Lok Sabha elections and later he was elevated as state forest minister in Chief Minister Mohan Yadav-led BJP government in Madhya Pradesh.
The BJP has fielded Rawat from his stronghold Vijaypur against Congress candidate Vijaypur Malhotra, who joined the Congress a couple of months back.
Bypolls in two Assembly seats -- Vijaypur and Budhni -- are scheduled for November 13, and the results will be announced on November 23.