BJP leader Siddharth Tiwari calls Digvijaya Singh 'Maulana', says ex-MP CM always conspired against Srinivas Tiwari

Rewa, Sep 19 (IANS) Bharatiya Janata Party legislator Siddharth Tiwari, on Friday, launched a scathing attack at veteran Congress leader and former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Digvijaya Singh, calling him a 'Maulana' during a public event in Rewa's Teonthar.

In a targeted attack on Digvijaya Singh, the BJP MLA said that during a recent visit to Rewa, Digvijaya Singh talked about Congress' ideology.

"I know the Congress and Digvijaya Singh very well and that why I call him Maulana Digvijaya Singh," he said.

Tiwari made this remark in the presence of Chief Minister Mohan Yadav and several other senior BJP leaders from Rewa and Satna districts during a public programme in Teonthar Assembly constituency of Rewa, bordering with Prayagraj district of Uttar Pradesh.

Interestingly, Siddharth Tiwari is the grandson of former Congress leader late Srinivas Tiwari, who was the Assembly Speaker during Digvijaya Singh-led Congress government in Madhya Pradesh between 1993 and 2003.

"Digvijaya Singh always tried to weaken my grandfather Srinivas Tiwari. Once my grandfather told me that when Congress won the election in 1993, my grandfather was supposed to become a Cabinet Minister, but he was made the Assembly Speaker," the BJP MLA said.

He went on to claim that it was Digvijaya Singh, who opposed Srinivas Tiwari's inclusion in the Cabinet.

"It was done to weaken and end his (Srinivas Tiwari's) political career. But after becoming the Assembly Speaker my grandfather had brought Digvijaya Singh under his control for 10 years," Tiwari said.

This attack on Digvijaya Singh came just two days after he participated in the 100th birth anniversary of former Madhya Pradesh Assembly Speaker Srinivas Tiwari in Rewa, which was also attended by several Congress leaders, including state party chief Jitu Patwari and Ajay Singh, the son of former Chief Minister Arjun Singh.

Siddharth Tiwari, whose father late Sundarlal Tiwari was also a Leader of Opposition in the Assembly, had joined the BJP ahead of the Assembly elections in 2023 after he was denied a Congress ticket.

He blamed Digvijaya Singh and Ajay Singh for denying him a ticket from the Congress.

Notably, Siddharth Tiwari had contested Lok Sabha election from Rewa on Congress ticket, but he lost the election against BJP's Janardan Mishra in 2019.

In 2023, he joined the BJP and was elected an MLA from the Teonthar Assembly seat of Rewa.

In 2022, when Rahul Gandhi-led Bharat Jodo Yatra was passing from Madhya Pradesh along with displaying Digvijaya Singh's photo while a sleeping mat had grabbed media attention, Siddharth Tiwari, who was then associated with the Congress, had praised Digvijaya Singh calling him a "Karmayogi".

"Karmayogi don't say anything, make noise! Keep this journey going, towards new horizons. Showing the spirit of sacrifice, penance and dedication for the nation, this picture is respected. This dedication inspires all of us to sacrifice everything for the service of the country and society," Siddharth Tiwari had then wrote on X about Digvijaya Singh in 2022.

--IANS

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