Overview
- The BJP’s choice of Ashutosh Tiwari over veteran Narottam Mishra prompted thousands of Mishra’s supporters to protest, block the Gwalior–Jhansi Highway and close shops earlier this week.
- Police reportedly used tear gas to disperse demonstrators and Mishra says criminal cases were later registered against hundreds of party workers, a claim not independently verified in the reports.
- On Thursday Mishra performed a dandavat pranam at a Datia temple and announced a 15-day pledge to campaign door-to-door for Ashutosh Tiwari.
- Mishra appealed to workers to remain calm and support the BJP as an organisation while warning the Datia collector and superintendent of police that he remembers both friendship and enmity.
- The episode underscores risks to local party discipline in Madhya Pradesh and matters for the July 30 Datia bypoll because unrest and claims of reprisals could shape voter mobilisation and campaign tone.