'Betrayal is in Scindia's blood'

'The Scindias betrayed Jhansi ki Rani and now the Congress party.'
'So this is nothing new as he is repeating the history of his family.'

Tuesday, Rang Panchami, was a day of hectic political developments, as the Congress's leader in Madhya Pradesh Jyotiraditya Scindia, who had been playing hide and seek with his party for the last two days, surfaced in New Delhi to meet Prime Minister Narendra Damodardas Modi and Home Minister Amit Anilchandra Shah.

The move sealed his decision to quit the Congress party, and 21 Congress legislators have since resigned from the MP assembly. If their resignations are accepted, the Kamal Nath government in MP will be reduced to a minority.

Later in the day -- his late father, Congressman Madhavrao's 75th birthday incidentally -- Scindia tweeted his resignation letter addressed to the Congress's interim President Sonia Gandhi; and the Congress, in a retaliatory move, expelled him.

Scindia's angst at being sidelined in his home state, and his disappointment with the state of drift in the Congress party, had been visible since the 2019 Lok Sabha election. Still, his leaving the party -- which appointed him general secretary in charge of western Uttar Pradesh for the general election -- sent shockwaves in the political establishment, as he is the biggest leader so far to cross over from the Congress to the Bharatiya Janata Party.

But not everyone is surprised by his move. Arun Yadav, former president of the Congress in Madhya Pradesh, has come down heavily on Scindia for leaving the party.

In a series of tweets, Yadav said, 'It was the history of the Scindia family to backstab. First they backstabbed Rani Laxmibai of Jhansi and now the Congress party'.

Speaking to Rediff.com's Syed Firdaus Ashraf about Scindia's resignation, Yadav says, "There is no ideology for him. He quit the Congress for personal interests. It is the history of his family, it is nothing new."

You have been very harsh on Jyotiraditya Scindia and his family in your tweets.

It is the history of the Scindias. They betrayed Indians by joining hands with the British. Betrayal is in Scindia's blood. They have ditched the Congress party this time.

Don't you think the Congress needs to introspect about his departure as you failed to woo him?

But he has backstabbed the Congress for his personal interest.

Scindia has been a loyal Congressman for so many years. I am sure there must be genuine reasons why he was upset.

The Scindias betrayed Jhansi ki Rani and now the Congress party. Just imagine what they did to Jhansi ki Rani and how she ended her life.

So this is nothing new as he is repeating the history of his family, and this time the betrayal is of the Congress party. You know that famous poem Jhansi Ki Rani? Read it carefully to see how the Scindias have been mentioned in it.

Angrezon ke mitra Scindia ne chhodi rajdhani thi
Bundelon harbolon ke muhn humne suni kahani thi
Khub ladi mardani woh toh Jhansiwali rani thi.

(Scindia, friends of the British, ran away from their capital
This is the story we heard from Bundelon Harbolon (Bundelkhand's singers)
But she fought so bravely, our queen of Jhansi.)

How come no one in the party gauged Scindia's mood when it was no secret that he was upset with the Congress?

If he was upset, he could have spoken in the party forum which he didn't do. Scindia was the Congress party's face in Madhya Pradesh. He was a national leader of the Congress party. Whenever the Congress government ruled, he got top posts.

There is no ideology for him. He quit the Congress for personal interests. And it is the history of his family, it is nothing new. Even his father Madhavrao Scindia had quit the Congress earlier. Everybody knows this.

You can always say he has only gone back to his grandmother's party, the late Rajmata Vijayaraje Scindia was a founder-member of the BJP after all.

He could have done so earlier too. But he backstabbed an elected government.

Kamal Nathji's government was running stable and smoothly in Madhya Pradesh. He destabilised the government for personal gains.

In his letter to Sonia Gandhi, Scindia writes that he wanted to serve the people which he could not do in the Congress party.

Then he should have done that seva by being a part of the Congress. He wanted mewa (fruits of power), so he went to the BJP.

This drama was going on for the last two days. Why didn't anyone try to prevent him from leaving?

We all tried. Sonia Gandhi tried. Rahul Gandhi tried. A number of Congressmen told him not to leave the party, but he would just not listen to us. He just didn't respond to our calls.

Should he have been made chief minister instead of Kamal Nath?

Whatever he wants to become, let him become. You ask this question to him. He betrayed the Congress government.

Will the Congress now suffer badly in Madhya Pradesh for this lapse?

We will run the government and complete our term. This is a stable government and we got a mandate from the people of Madhya Pradesh.

The BJP did not get a mandate from the people of Madhya Pradesh, but we got the mandate. People are supreme and they elected us.

Are you saying the Kamal Nath government will not fall?

We will sail through this crisis. Our government will not fall.