In a massive setback for the Congress, its prominent youth leader Jyotiraditya Scindia quit the party pushing the Kamal Nath government in Madhya Pradesh to the brink of collapse and signalling that he is likely to join hands with the BJP.

On its part, the Congress expelled the party general secretary and scion of the erstwhile Gwalior royal family on charges of anti-party activities.

In the morning, Scindia met senior BJP leader and home minister Amit Shah, following which he called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi at his 7, Lok Kalyan Marg residence. In the resignation letter dated March 9 to Congress President Sonia Gandhi, Scindia said it was time for him to move on as he was not able to serve the people of the country while remaining in the party.

It was time, he said, for him to make a fresh start.

The Congress, however, said his letter was physically received at Sonia Gandhi's residence only at 12.20 pm on Tuesday.

With Scindia quitting the party, the Congress government in Madhya Pradesh appeared headed for a collapse as the former Guna MP has the support of at least 17 legislators who had gone incommunicado on Monday, with most of them believed to be camping in Bengaluru.

Earlier, 19 MLAs were said to have quit the party.

As the day progressed, however, as many as 22 MLAs loyal to Scindia were understood to have sent their resignations to Madhya Pradesh Governor Lal Ji Tandon, Raj Bhavan sources said.

Apart from the 22 MLAs, state Congress spokesperson Pankaj Chaturvedi, a close confidant of Scindia, has also resigned from the party.

Till Monday, the Congress looked to have a wafer-thin majority in the Madhya Pradesh Assembly whose current effective strength is 228. The BJP has nine less at 104. The Congress also has the support of four Independents, two BSP and one SP MLA.

Elections for three Rajya Sabha seats from the state is slated for March 26. Both the Congress and the BJP are sure to win one seat each, and the changing dynamics in the state politics means that the saffron party may eye to win the third seat.

The Congress president has approved the expulsion of Jyotiraditya Scindia from the Indian National Congress with immediate effect for anti-party activities

KC Venugopal, AICC general secretary

Kamal Nath seeks removal of 6 mininsters

Amid the political crisis in Madhya Pradesh, chief minister Kamal Nath on Tuesday wrote to state governor Lalji Tandon seeking immediate removal of six ministers who belonged to the camp of Scindia.

The copy of the letter, shared by a state Congress spokesman, mentioned the names of Imarati Devi, Tulsi Silawat, Govind Singh Rajput, Mahendra Singh Sisodiya, Pradyumn Singh Tomar and Prabhuram Chaudhari.

Fresh start

Noting that the events of the day had been drawing themselves out for a year, Scindia, in his letter to Gandhi, said it was now best for him to look at a fresh start.

“Having been a primary member of the Congress party for the last 18 years. It is now time for me to move on. I am tendering my resignation from the primary membership of the Congress and as you well know this is a path that has been drawing itself out over the last year,” Scindia wrote in the letter.

According to a statement from AICC general secretary K. C. Venugopal, “The Congress president has approved the expulsion of Jyotiraditya Scindia from the Indian National Congress with immediate effect for anti-party activities.”

In the resignation letter posted on Twitter, Scindia said, “While my aim and purpose remains the same as it has always been from the very beginning, to serve the people of my state and my country, I believe I am unable to do this anymore within this party.

“To reflect and realise the aspirations of my people and workers I believe it is best that I now look ahead at a fresh start.”

The former Guna MP also thanked Gandhi and other former Congress colleagues for “providing him with a platform to have served the nation”.

Digvijay smells BJP plot

Senior Congress leader Digvijay Singh parried questions on the exact number of MLAs supporting the party in Madhya Pradesh amid the ongoing political crisis.

Repeating his allegation that the BJP was trying to destabilise the Congress-led government, Singh told reporters in Bhopal on Tuesday that the BJP had arranged three chartered planes for Bengaluru on Monday to fly out some MLAs loyal to Scindia.

“We want to know why Bengaluru is used everytime to destabilise governments?” he questioned. Asked about the number of MLAs supporting the Congress in the current political scenario, Singh only said, “Just wait”. He said an atmosphere of uneasiness had been prevailing in the BJP since the Kamal Nath government started cracking a whip on various mafias. “We (the state government) are exposing Vyapam scam, e-tendering scam, Madhyam scam… In the honey-trap case, BJP men were found to be involved. This will be exposed,” he said.