Bhopal, Nov. 7: Madhya Pradesh chief minister Babulal Gaur suddenly finds himself on a sticky wicket.

Dacoits are on a rampage in Chambal and arch rival Uma Bharti has staged a boisterous comeback. Regional satraps like Sumitra Mahajan and Vikram Verma, who were keeping a low profile, have suddenly turned hostile, rushing to Delhi to complain against ?faulty? ticket distribution for the ensuing civic polls.

Today, Gaur received more bad news from Gwalior, where a Gujjar mahapanchayat announced its decision to raise a ?private army? to take on dacoit Rambabu Gadaria in Chambal. The mahapanchyat decided that the group would be called Subadev Hans, named after legendary hero Subadev who had led an armed rebellion during the early days of the British Raj.

The mahapanchayat was addressed by many Congress leaders like MPs Jyotiraditya Scindia and Avtaar Singh Bhadana, who gave the Gaur government an ?ultimatum? to nab Gadaria by Diwali. On October 29, Gadaria had massacred 14 people in Bhanwarpura, some 100 km from Gwalior.

Gaur accused the Congress of ?playing politics? with massacre but fell silent when Uma also spoke up against the authorities. Uma, who visited the village on Thursday, lashed out at police for failing to arrest Gadaria. The former chief minister said she expected the police to ?finish off? Gadaria in an encounter. ?Till I see Gadaria?s body, I will not have peace,? Uma said.

The civic polls are proving to be Gaur?s biggest headache. He has had little say in the distribution of tickets outside Bhopal but his detractors are sharpening knives on the premise that the BJP would not be able to repeat its 2003 Assembly poll performance.

The party had won 178 out of the 230 seats in the Assembly and repeated the performance in the 2004 Lok Sabha polls, bagging 25 out of the 29 seats. Gaur?s supporters argue civic polls are more complex and difficult, in which the outcome largely depends on a candidate?s personality.