Kamal Nath & MP Congress induct Gwalior Hindu Mahasabha neta, month after Godse Gyaanshala

In the latest development, former Hindu Mahasabha leader Babulal Chaurasia joined Congress in the presence of former MP CM Kamal Nath on Wednesday. Babulal Chaurasia's induction into Congress raises eyebrows as the grand-old-party has been up in arms against the Hindu Mahasabha and what it dubs as 'supporters of Nathuram Godse'. The former Mahasabha leader, who is also the Councilor of ward 44 of Gwalior, is expected to get a ticket to contest in the upcoming civic polls in the state.

READ | 'If BJP Backs Gandhi's Ideology...': Kamal Nath Dares MP Govt To Act Against Godse Centre

Last month, Kamal Nath had lashed out at the BJP government for allowing the worship of Mahatma Gandhi's assassin Nathuram Godse in the state. He was referring to the opening of a study center on Godse by the Hindu Mahasabha at its Gwalior office. Nath called upon MP CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan and BJP to clarify whether they backed the ideology of Mahatma Gandhi's killer. The Madhya Pradesh Police shut down the study center following the Opposition's criticism. 

READ | Hindu Mahasabha Opens 'Godse Gyaanshala' In MP's Gwalior; Terms Him A 'true Patriot'

Hindu Mahasabha had opened a study centre on Nathuram Godse, the assassin of Mahatma Gandhi, at its office in Gwalior in Madhya Pradesh. Named as 'Godse Gyaanshala', the Hindu Mahasabha claimed that it is to "educate" youngsters on the Partition of India and to spread awareness about historical personalities like Maharana Pratap. Mahasabha leaders like Vinod Joshi, Kailash Narayan Sharma, Lal ji Sharma and Haridas Agrawal were present on the occasion. 

READ | Madhya Pradesh Police Shuts Down 'Godse Gyaanshala' Post Criticism From Congress

Madhya Pradesh crisis & bypolls

Kamal Nath had been elected CM of Madhya Pradesh following the 2018 elections in the state but his government ran into a crisis in 2020 when Congress accused BJP of poaching its MLAs. Soon, 22 MLAs including 6 cabinet ministers - loyal to an unhappy Jyotiraditya Scindia - quit the party, reducing the Congress to a minority government with 92 MLAs. Delivering a massive blow to Congress, Scindia resigned from Congress and then joined the BJP. After Kamal Nath was forced to step down as CM and the Madhya Pradesh Speaker accepted all 22 MLAs' resignations, all of them promptly joined BJP. Three more Congress MLAs joined BJP since then - vacating 27 seats in the Assembly.

Scindia's rebellion paid off with 12 rebel MLAs being given cabinet portfolios in July's cabinet expansion after Shivraj Singh Chouhan. Scindia himself has been elected to the Rajya Sabha. He has also been included in several important parliamentary panels. 

Subsequently, in the bypolls that followed, Scindia managed to get 19 rebel MLAs re-elected, while Congress barely won 10 seats in the 30-seat bypolls. Since then, in another cabinet expansion, two more Scindia loyalists got cabinet berths - taking the total to 15 rebel ministers. Scindia now holds sway over half of 4-term CM Shivraj Chouhan's cabinet and recently defended the Farm Laws and the Budget in the Rajya Sabha. 

READ | Ex-MP CM Kamal Nath Claims 'Votes Of TV Serial Watchers Win Elections, Not News Watchers'