Madhya Pradesh elections: Mhow poll battle gets namesake twist

INDORE: The battle of ballot in Mhow took an interesting turn with BJP candidate Usha Thakur getting a fresh competition from an independent – Usha Thakur.
This 34-year-old independent candidate is a social worker and has no affiliation with any political party. Independent Usha Thakur filed nominations on the last day. The move escaped the eyes of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders, who were busy quelling protest from party workers over ticket being given to an ‘outsider’, Usha Thakur, 52, a resident of Sangam Nagar.
Usha Thakur from Mhow claimed that she was not propped up by Congress. "It’s my first election. I am a social worker and wanted to take the polls as an opportunity to reach out to people of this constituency and work for their development in coming years. I don’t have connection with any political party," the independent candidate told TOI.
"It’s a usual question whether I have been fielded by Congress to 'confuse' voters due to similar names. People also asked if BJP is supporting me as two candidates with same name may affect Congress candidate but these allegations have no ground," said Usha, who has total assets of Rs 2 lakh.
BJP’s Usha Thakur does not see the independent candidate as a threat.
"People know that lotus is BJP’s symbol. People will vote wisely. It’s democracy and any person of this country (fulfilling the set criteria) has right to contest the polls," the BJP candidate said. While the BJP is still mulling plans to counter the development, Congress candidate Antar Singh Darbar denied the involvement of his party.
"I am not aware about two Usha Thakurs contesting from Mhow. You need to confirm it from BJP," he said.
Mhow’s contest seems similar to Rau’s 2013 polls when the then BJP candidate Jeetu Jirati had to face competition from an independent Jeetu Jirati. It is believed that BJP’s votes fell into kitty of independent candidate. Congress had wrested the seat from BJP.
While BJP plans to counter the development, Congress candidate Antar Singh Darbar denied the involvement of his party.