MP: Congress suspends former MLA Rajendra Bharti’s primary membership

Bhopal/Datia Aug 2 (AHN) In a sharp organisational decision timed just before the announcement of the Datia Assembly by-election results, the Congress party on Sunday “suspended primary membership of Rajendra Bharti”, former MLA in the Madhya Pradesh Assembly.

An official communication issued has not mentioned the reason for the action.

However, party sources said the action followed sustained allegations by the party’s official candidate Ghanshyam Singh, who had publicly accused Bharti of working against the Congress during the by-poll campaign. The two leaders had been locked in a war of words in recent days, with their mutual charges spilling into the open and casting a shadow over the local party unit’s campaign efforts.

Rajendra Bharti has been a key player in Datia politics for years. A three-time MLA, he rose to prominence at the state level after defeating the then-Home Minister (Madhya Pradesh) Narottam Mishra in the 2023 Madhya Pradesh assembly elections, a result that was regarded as a major political upset.

The Bharti family has deep roots in the constituency; his father, the late Shyam Sundar Shyam, was a senior Congress leader and MLA, which helped establish a strong local support base.

The action has been taken after approval from All India Congress Committee president Mallikarjun Kharge.

Bharti’s own legislative career, however, was cut short earlier this year.

A special court sentenced him to three years’ imprisonment in an old cooperative bank fraud case.

Following the conviction, his membership of the Madhya Pradesh Legislative Assembly was terminated, paving the way for the by-election in Datia.

Although he approached the High Court seeking a stay on the conviction in a bid to remain eligible to contest, the attempt was unsuccessful, and he was barred from the fray.

Party sources said the expulsion was ordered after an assessment of the complaints raised by the official candidate and the visible impact of the internal feud on the campaign.

By acting just before the results, the Congress leadership sought to send a clear message on discipline and loyalty within the organisation.