Arjun Singh

Bhopal, Oct. 14: Congress veteran Arjun Singh is trying to make himself relevant again in his hometown Satna but he is finding few takers within the party.

The former human resource development minister and his supporters are busy organising a “panchayat sammelan” and a “jan chetna rally” on October 27.

Ostensibly, the twin programmes are aimed at reviving the Congress in the Rewanchal region of Madhya Pradesh bordering with eastern Uttar Pradesh where civic polls are due later this year.

But the Madhya Pradesh Congress Committee headed by Suresh Pachauri has little knowledge of the panchayat-level convention or the mass awakening programme.

MPCC spokesperson Arvind Malviya said: “We are not aware if these functions are being organised under the aegis of the Congress.”

Satna, over 500km from Bhopal, is in the heart of the Rewanchal region that used to be Arjun’s citadel. However, successive electoral setbacks, Arjun’s irrelevance in national politics and factionalism have marginalised the Congress so much that it has merely a single MLA from the 30-odd seats that represent Rewanchal in the Madhya Pradesh Assembly.

The general elections in 2009 saw Arjun’s daughter Veena Singh contesting as an Independent from the Sidhi Lok Sabha constituency leading to the defeat of the Congress from Rewa, Satna and all other seats from the region.

Arjun has recently returned from the US where he is said to have undergone treatment for his nagging backache. The senior leader, who is also member of the Congress Working Committee, no longer requires a walking stick or wheel chair that had curtailed his political activities.

At the national level, Arjun’s political future appears bleak. He was excluded from the Manmohan Singh cabinet when the UPA returned to power in May. Some of his supporters hoped that a gubernatorial assignment would be given to him in recognition of his seniority and loyalty but the Congress high command has ignored this so far.

In the Rewanchal region, the Congress is witnessing a division among those loyal to Arjun, the party and his son Ajay. A closer scrutiny shows that there are very few leaders and local workers who find acceptance with Arjun, Ajay and the MPCC.

Officially, both Arjun and Ajay present a united face but privately, the father-son duo are not in the best of terms. During the parliamentary polls, Arjun had toured Sidhi to campaign for Congress nominee Inderjit Patel but his wife and grandson were seen at Veena’s public meetings.

At one public meeting, someone had presented Arjun a coconut, which was incidentally, the election symbol of his rebel daughter.

There is speculation of AICC general secretary Digvijay Singh and Union minister of state for commerce and industry Jyotiraditya Scindia attending the “panchayat sammelan” and the “jan chetna rally” but local leaders here say their presence will have more to do with gauging the mood than to side with Arjun.

Shriniwas Tiwari, a former Speaker of the Madhya Pradesh Assembly and Arjun’s arch-rival in the region, is also expected to attend the convention. Tiwari, known as “safed sher” because of his white hair and eyebrows, is said to have bought peace with Arjun. The octogenarian leader faces allegations of corruption.

Incidentally, a recent book on Arjun has claimed that the politician had wanted to become a film actor. A young Arjun in Rewa was a friend of screen villain Prem Nath whose sister was married to Raj Kapoor.

Instead of politics, Arjun wanted to be in Bollywood but his father advised him to consult his wife Saroj who reportedly overruled him.