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{{Short description|14th Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh, India}} | |||
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2011}} | |||
{{Other people|Digvijay Singh|Digvijay Singh (disambiguation){{!}}Digvijay Singh}} | |||
{{Infobox Indian politician | |||
{{pp-pc}} | |||
| name = Digvijay Singh | |||
{{Use Indian English|date=June 2024}} | |||
| image = | |||
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2024}} | |||
| caption = | |||
{{Infobox officeholder | |||
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1947|2|28|df=y}} | |||
| name = Digvijaya Singh | |||
| birth_place = ], ] | |||
| nickname = Diggi Raja<ref>{{Cite news|last=Noronha|first=Rahul|date=12 April 2018|title=Diggi raja is back|url=https://www.indiatoday.in/magazine/states/story/20180423-digvijay-singh-madhya-pradesh-congress-digvijay-narmada-parikrama-1211456-2018-04-12|access-date=5 April 2021|work=India Today|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last=ANI|date=13 May 2019|title='Diggi Raja' misleading first-time voters by not voting, claims PM|work=Business Standard India|url=https://www.business-standard.com/article/news-ani/diggi-raja-misleading-first-time-voters-by-not-voting-claims-pm-119051300609_1.html|access-date=5 April 2021}}</ref> | |||
| residence = 8-A, Lodhi Estate, New Delhi-110 003<ref name="Member's Profile, 10th Lok Sabha"></ref> | |||
| image = Digvijaya Singh (cropped).jpg | |||
| caption = Singh in 2020 | |||
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1947|02|28|df=y}} | |||
| birth_place = ], ], ]<br/>(now in ], ]) | |||
| alma_mater = ] (SGSITS) Indore | |||
| residence = | |||
| death_date = | | death_date = | ||
| death_place = | | death_place = | ||
| office = ] | |||
| office = ] ] of ] | |||
| constituency = ] | | constituency = ] | ||
| |
| term_start = 10 April 2014 | ||
| term_end = | |||
| predecessor = ] | |||
| predecessor = ] | |||
| successor = ] | |||
| successor = | |||
| party =] | |||
| office1 = 14th ] | |||
| spouse = Asha Digvijaya Singh<ref name="Member's Profile, 10th Lok Sabha"/> | |||
| term1 = 7 December 1993 – 8 December 2003 | |||
| religion = | |||
| predecessor1 = ] | |||
| website = | |||
| successor1 = ] | |||
|profession = Agriculturist<ref name="Member's Profile, 10th Lok Sabha"/> | |||
| party = ] | |||
| footnotes =| | |||
| spouse = {{plainlist| | |||
| | |||
* {{marriage|Asha Digvijaya Singh|1969|2013|end=died}} | |||
* {{marriage|Amrita Rai|2015}} | |||
}} | }} | ||
| children = 5, including ] | |||
| website = | |||
| profession = Politician, agriculturist<ref name="Member's Profile, 10th Lok Sabha"/> | |||
| office2 = ] | |||
'''Digvijay Singh''' (born 28 February 1947) is an ]n politician, a former ] and a senior leader of the ] political party.<ref>{{cite news|author=PTI, 1 Nov 2009, 01.43 pm IST |url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/I-had-an-offer-to-join-Jana-Sangh-in-1970-Digvijay-/articleshow/5185792.cms |title=I had an offer to join Jana Sangh in 1970: Digvijay |work=The Times of India |location=India |date=2009-11-01 |accessdate=2010-06-13}}</ref> Before being elected as a Chief Minister he had served as a minister in the Cabinet of ], the then ] of Madhya Pradesh during 1980–84. He became the President of Madhya Pradesh Congress Committee in the year 1985. He served as the Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh for two consecutive five-year terms. He first became Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh on 7 December 1993 and continued to hold the office till Congress was voted out of the power in November 2003. He is the ] of the ]. | |||
| constituency2 = ] | |||
| term_start2 = 1984 | |||
| term_end2 = 1989 | |||
| preceded2 = Pandit Vasantkumar Ramkrishna | |||
| succeeded2 = Pyarelal Khandelwal | |||
| constituency3 = ] | |||
==Early life== | |||
| term_start3 = 1991 | |||
| term_end3 = 1994 | |||
| preceded3 = Pyarelal Khandelwal | |||
| succeeded3 = ] | |||
| office4 = ] of ] | |||
Digvijay Singh was born in the ] royal principality. He hails from a ] background.<ref></ref> He was educated at the ] in ]. He is also an alumnus of ], where he completed a B.E. in Civil Engineering in 1968. | |||
| constituency4 = ]<ref>{{cite web |title=Madhya Pradesh Assembly Election Results in 1998 |url=https://www.elections.in/madhya-pradesh/assembly-constituencies/1998-election-results.html |website=elections.in |access-date=6 April 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Madhya Pradesh Assembly Election Results in 2003|url=https://www.elections.in/madhya-pradesh/assembly-constituencies/2003-election-results.html |website=elections.in |access-date=6 April 2021}}</ref> | |||
| termstart4 = {{Start date|1998||}} | |||
| termend4 = {{End date|2008||}} | |||
| predecessor4 = ] | |||
| successor4 = ] | |||
| constituency5 = ]<ref>{{cite web |title=Madhya Pradesh Assembly Election Results in 1993 |url=https://www.elections.in/madhya-pradesh/assembly-constituencies/1993-election-results.html |website=elections.in |access-date=6 April 2021}}</ref> | |||
| termstart5 = {{Start date|1994||}} | |||
| termend5 = {{End date|1998||}} | |||
| predecessor5 = Shivnarayan Meena | |||
| successor5 = Shivnarayan Meena | |||
| constituency6 = ]<ref>{{cite web |title=Madhya Pradesh Assembly Election Results in 1977 |url=https://www.elections.in/madhya-pradesh/assembly-constituencies/1977-election-results.html |website=elections.in |access-date=6 April 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Madhya Pradesh Assembly Election Results in 1980 |url=https://www.elections.in/madhya-pradesh/assembly-constituencies/1980-election-results.html |website=elections.in |access-date=6 April 2021}}</ref> | |||
| termstart6 = {{Start date|1977||}} | |||
| termend6 = {{End date|1984||}} | |||
| predecessor6 = Harlal Shakyawar | |||
| successor6 = ] | |||
}} | |||
'''Digvijaya Singh''' (born 28 February 1947) is an ] and a ] in the ] since 2014. He is a senior leader of the ] and Ex-General Secretary of the ] party's ].<ref>{{cite web|title=Biography of Digvijaya Singh |url=http://www.digvijayasingh.in/bio.html |publisher=Office of Digvijaya Singh |access-date=7 April 2022 |url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130422115228/http://www.digvijayasingh.in:80/bio.html |archive-date=22 April 2013 }}</ref> Previously, he had served as the 14th and 15th ], a central Indian state, in two terms from 1993 to 1998 and from 1998 to 2003. Prior to that he was a minister in Chief Minister ]'s cabinet between 1980 and 1984. In ] he was defeated by ] for ] Lok Sabha seat.<ref name=":0">{{cite web|url=http://results.eci.gov.in/pc/en/constituencywise/ConstituencywiseS1219.htm?ac=19|title=GENERAL ELECTION TO LOK SABHA TRENDS & RESULT 2019|website=ECI|date=24 May 2019|access-date=3 June 2019}}</ref> | |||
==Personal life== | ==Personal life== | ||
Digvijaya Singh was born on 28 February 1947 in ] in the princely state of ] of ].<ref name="Member's Profile, 10th Lok Sabha">{{Cite web|url=http://164.100.47.132/LssNew/biodata_1_12/3014.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131003040227/http://164.100.47.132/LssNew/biodata_1_12/3014.htm|url-status=dead|title=Member's Profile, 10th Lok Sabha|archive-date=3 October 2013|access-date=19 March 2020}}</ref> His father, ], was the Raja of ] (under ]), presently known as ] of Madhya Pradesh, and a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) as independent candidate for the Raghogarh Vidhan Sabha constituency following the 1951 elections.<ref name="auto">{{cite web |url=https://eci.nic.in/eci_main/StatisticalReports/SE_1951/StatRep_51_MB.pdf | title=Statistical Report on General Elections 1951 to Legislative Assembly of Madhya Bharat | publisher=Election Commission of India}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.outlookindia.com/magazine/story/tornapartism/240313 |title=TornapartismFamilies divided by party colours talk about living under one roof | date=27 April 2009 |last=DASGUPTA |first=DEBARSHI |access-date=27 April 2009}}</ref> He was educated at The ], Indore and the ] (SGSITS) Indore, where he completed his ] in Mechanical Engineering.<ref name="bio">{{cite web |url=http://www.digvijayasingh.in/bio.html |access-date=16 July 2013 |title=Biography |publisher=Digvijaya Singh}}</ref> | |||
Since 1969, he was married to Asha Singh, who died in 2013, and with whom he has four daughters and a son ], who was member of Madhya Pradesh's 14th Vidhan Sabha serving as the Cabinet Minister of Urban Development and Housing.<ref>{{cite news|agency=PTI |date=27 February 2013 |url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Asha-Singh-wife-of-Digvijay-Singh-dies/articleshow/18715222.cms |title=Asha Singh, wife of Digvijay Singh, dies |work=The Times of India|access-date=20 March 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=जयवर्धन सिंह बोले- राघोगढ़ का हर व्यक्ति कैबिनेट मंत्री |url=https://hindi.news18.com/news/madhya-pradesh/guna-jaivardhan-singh-says-every-person-of-raghogarh-is-cabinet-minister-mpgp-1635028.html |access-date=23 February 2020 |work=News18 India |date=1 January 1970}}</ref> In April 2014, he confirmed that he was in a relationship with a Rajya Sabha TV anchor Amrita Rai; they married in late August 2015.<ref>{{cite news|title=Congress leader Digvijaya Singh marries TV anchor Amrita Rai: Report|url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Congress-leader-Digvijaya-Singh-marries-TV-anchor-Amrita-Rai-Report/articleshow/48842589.cms|agency=Times of India|publisher=Times of India|date=6 September 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Digvijaya Singh marries Amrita Rai|url=http://indianexpress.com/article/india/india-others/digvijaya-singh-marries-amrita-rai/|agency=Indian Express|publisher=Indian Express|date=6 September 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Digvijaya Singh reacts over viral pic, accepts relationship with journalist Amrita Rai |date=30 April 2014 |work=Indian Express |url=http://indianexpress.com/article/india/politics/digvijaya-singh-reacts-over-viral-pic-accepts-relationship-with-journalist-amrita-rai/ |access-date=30 April 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.telangananewspaper.com/digvijaya-singh-second-marriage/ | location=Hyderabad, India | work=TNP | title=Love Story of Amrita Rai and Digvijaya singh Finally Agreed. | date=6 September 2015}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|title = Digvijaya Singh marries journalist Amrita Rai|url = http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/digvijaya-singh-marries-journalist-amrita-rai/article7622100.ece|newspaper = The Hindu|date = 6 September 2015|access-date = 6 September 2015|issn = 0971-751X}}</ref><ref name=Hindutva>{{cite web|author=Digvijaya Singh |url=http://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/digvijay-singhs-blog/entry/hindutva |title=Hindutva by Digvijaya Singh's Blog : Digvijaya Singh's blog-The Times Of India |publisher=Blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com |access-date=20 March 2013|date=30 June 2012 }}</ref> | |||
==Narmada Yatra== | |||
The sacred Narmada River, the lifeline of Central India, is worshipped as Narmada maiyya (mother) or Ma Rewa (derived from “rev” meaning leaping one). One of the five holy rivers of India, it is the only one which has the tradition of being circumambulated from source to sea and back, on a pilgrimage or yatra.{{Citation needed|date=October 2022}} | |||
Being the longest west-flowing river, the Narmada parikrama is a formidable spiritual exercise and challenge—an incredible journey of about 3,300 km.<ref>{{cite news |title=Narmada Parikrama: The Great Circumambulation |url=https://www.outlookindia.com/traveller/mp/inspire-me/culture/narmada-parikrama-great-circumambulation/ |access-date=7 April 2022 |work=Outlook Traveller |date=23 November 2017}}</ref> | |||
Digvijaya Singh along with his wife started the Narmada Parikrama on 30 September 2017, from Barman Ghat, on banks of river Narmada after taking the blessing of his spiritual guru Shankaracharya Swami Swaroopanand Saraswati.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://navbharattimes.indiatimes.com/state/madhya-pradesh/other-cities/at-70-digvijay-singh-to-start-3300-km-six-months-long-narmada-parikrama/articleshow/60894403.cms |title=दिग्विजय सिंह ने शुरू की 3,300 किलोमीटर लम्बी नर्मदा परिक्रमा |access-date=19 March 2020 |work=Navbharat Times |date=30 September 2017 |language=hi}}</ref> The journey took them from Barman Ghat, on River Narmada southern banks, all the way to its mouth at Bharuch in Gujarat. At Bharuch, Mithi Talai is the point where the Narmada joins the Arabian Sea. Here they took a motorboat from the southern to the northern end and begin the return journey along its northern bank. On 9 April 2018 they completed the narmada parikrama at Barman Ghat having covered {{convert|3300|km|mi}} by foot in 192 days.<ref>{{cite news |last1=PTI |title=Digvijay Singh concludes six-month-long 'Narmada Yatra' in Madhya Pradesh's Narsinghpur |url=https://www.firstpost.com/india/digvijay-singh-concludes-six-month-long-narmada-yatra-in-madhya-pradeshs-narsinghpur-4424827.html |access-date=7 April 2022 |work=Firstpost |date=9 April 2018 |language=en}}</ref> | |||
He has four daughters and a son. His wife Asha Singh died on 27 February 2013 at an age of 58 in Delhi after a prolonged battle with cancer.<ref>{{cite web|author=PTI Feb 27, 2013, 08.54PM IST |url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Asha-Singh-wife-of-Digvijay-Singh-dies/articleshow/18715222.cms |title=Asha Singh, wife of Digvijay Singh, dies - Times Of India |publisher=Timesofindia.indiatimes.com |date=2013-02-27 |accessdate=2013-03-20}}</ref> | |||
==Political career== | ==Political career== | ||
<!-- Deleted image removed: ] --> | |||
Digvijay Singh first became president of the Raghogarh municipal committee at the age of 22 years. He then joined the Congress party in 1971. He contested his first assembly elections in 1977 for the congress party and became an MLA for the first time from ].<ref name="General Elections of MP 1977">{{cite web |url=http://eci.nic.in/eci_main/StatisticalReports/SE_1977/Statistical%20Report%201977%20Madhya%20Pradesh.pdf|title=General Elections of MP 1977 |publisher=Election Commission of India |year=2004}}</ref> He was again elected MLA from Raghogarh constituency and became a Minister of State and later a Cabinet Minister in the Madhya Pradesh state government led by ] in 1980–84.<ref name="D S 1">{{cite web |url=http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/topic/Digvijay-Singh|title=Digvijay Singh/Economic Times |publisher=Economictimes_dot_indiatimes_dot_com|year=2012}}</ref> He was elected as a Member of Parliament in 1984 and 1991 from ] and became the President of Madhya Pradesh Congress Committee in 1985. In 1993 Digvijay Singh became the Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh. He won the bye election from Chachhoda constituency as he could not contest from the Raghogarh constituency which was vacated for him by his brother Laxman Singh who won the seat in 1993 assembly elections because Laxman Singh's election to assembly was challenged by a candidate through a petition.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rediff.com/news/1998/feb/05mp.htm |title=Rediff On The NeT: Madhya Pradesh CM Digvijay Singh's proxy war |publisher=Rediff.com |date=1998-02-05 |accessdate=2013-03-20}}</ref> He then got re-elected for his second term as chief minister in 1998 and again won the election from Raghogarh constituency. However, Congress was voted out by the people in 2003 assembly elections; BJP has been in power since then. He was elected MLA from the Raghogarh constituency in 2003. | |||
===MLA and MP, 1977–1993=== | |||
==Praise for Development of Madhya Pradesh and self claim== | |||
Singh was president of the Raghogarh ] (a municipal committee) between 1969 and 1971.<ref name="Member's Profile, 10th Lok Sabha" /> An offer in 1970 from ] for him to join the Jana Sangh was not taken up and he subsequently joined the Congress party.<ref>{{cite news|agency=PTI |url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/I-had-an-offer-to-join-Jana-Sangh-in-1970-Digvijay-/articleshow/5185792.cms |title=I had an offer to join Jana Sangh in 1970: Digvijay |work=The Times of India|date=1 November 2009 |access-date=13 June 2010}}</ref> He became a ] (MLA) as the party's representative for the ] of the ] in the 1977 elections.<ref name="General Elections of MP 1977">{{cite web |url=http://eci.nic.in/eci_main/StatisticalReports/SE_1977/Statistical%20Report%201977%20Madhya%20Pradesh.pdf|title=General Elections of MP 1977 |publisher=Election Commission of India |year=2004 |page=4}}</ref> This was the same constituency that his father had won in 1951 as member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) as independent candidate for the Raghogarh Vidhan Sabha constituency following the 1951 elections.<ref name="auto"/> Digvijaya was later re-elected from the Raghogarh constituency and became a Minister of State and later a Cabinet Minister in the ] led by ], whom he has called his mentor,<ref name="bs20120617" /> between 1980 and 1984.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Kumar |first1=Anurag |title=Madhya Pradesh elections 2018: Who is Digvijaya Singh |url=https://www.indiatvnews.com/elections/madhya-pradesh-assembly-elections-madhya-pradesh-elections-2018-who-is-digvijaya-singh-489372 |access-date=28 November 2019 |work=] |date=4 December 2018 |language=en}}</ref> | |||
In 2010, Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh, Shivraj Singh Chouhan praised Digvijay Singh stating that during his tenure as Chief Minister, he had launched many schemes for the uplift of Dalits, poor and economically backward class in the state and maintained personal relations with people cutting across party lines. He said that Singh's helping nature and kind heartedness make him an evergreen leader even today.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.dnaindia.com/india/1347681/report-shivraj-chouhan-sings-praises-of-rival-digvijay-singh|work=DNA|title=Shivraj Chouhan sings praises of rival Digvijay Singh|date=February 14 2010}}</ref> <ref>{{cite news|url=http://zeenews.india.com/news/states/shivraj-singh-chouhan-heaps-praise-on-digvijay_604066.html|work=DNA|title=Shivraj Singh Chouhan heaps praise on Digvijay|date=February 14 2010}}</ref> In April 2013, Chouhan claimed that Madhya Pradesh had achieved a 10.2% growth rate under the 11 thFive Year Plan period, which is twice the national average. This accomplishment, the chief minister claimed, has been the outcome of tremendous development in infrastructure, agriculture, power and industry segments. Digvijay Singh referred the statement as a false propaganda and that those are utterly false claims. However a day later, he demanded the credit for development of Madhya Pradesh. My government started the development process.<ref>{{cite news|last=Gupta|first=Suchandana|title=Digvijay claims his policies initiated development in MP|url=http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-04-14/india/38528514_1_shivraj-singh-chouhan-digvijay-singh-growth-rate|accessdate=29 April 2013|newspaper=The Times of India|date=14 April 2013}}</ref> | |||
He was president of the ] between 1985 and 1988, having been nominated by ], and was re-elected in 1992.<ref name="bio" /> He had been elected as a member of the ], the ] of the ], in the ], representing the ]. He was the first Congress politician to win the constituency, which had been created in 1977. Having won that contest by 150,000 votes, he lost the seat to ] of the ] (BJP) by 57,000 votes in the ]. He regained it in ], becoming a member of the ].<ref name="rediff19980205" /> | |||
==Controversies== | |||
===Chhattisgarh Separation=== | |||
After the formation of ] in 2001, Digvijay Singh played a major role in the selection of ] as the Chief Minister for the state. While Singh managed to convince the majority of ] members to back Ajit Jogi, the absence of ] and his supporters at the meeting raised questions about the exercise of seeking consensus as Shukla was the other top contender for the post.<ref></ref> Digvijay Singh, accompanied by ] and Prabha Rao, went to meet V.C. Shukla at his residence in Raipur, soon after the election of Ajit Jogi, to placate him. At around 2 pm about 200 men, including Madhya Pradesh Minister Ashok Rao, confronted them at Shukla's residence. They refused to let the car in, but the chief minister stepped out and asked the men to behave themselves. This provoked the mob which hurled abuses and began heckling Digvijay until he fell. Singh and Azad were hit and slapped by them. They ripped Singh's kurta, flung slippers and socked him at random. Shellshocked for the first few minutes, the chief minister started striking back. It was left to Shukla to control the men and escort Digvijay inside. Shukla later commented "It was a very unfortunate and reprehensible incident. These were some anti-socials who had come in. Neither do they belong to the Congress nor do they have anything to do with me,” he later said.<ref></ref><ref></ref> | |||
===Chief Minister, 1993–2003=== | |||
===Corruption allegations and counter-allegations=== | |||
In 1993, he resigned from the Lok Sabha because he had been appointed Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh. His brother, ], had been elected in 1993 as a Congress MLA in Madhya Pradesh from the same Raghogarh assembly constituency that Digivijaya had previously held. Lakshman resigned from the seat in favour of Digvijaya, who needed to be elected to the Madhya Pradesh Legislative Assembly in order to fulfill his role as Chief Minister. However, the scheme failed when a petition was filed that challenged the validity of Lakshman's 1993 election. Digvijaya instead won the by-election from ] constituency, which was vacated by the Former MLA Shivnarayan Meena that time for the purpose.<ref name="rediff19980205">{{cite web|url=http://www.rediff.com/news/1998/feb/05mp.htm |title=Madhya Pradesh CM Digvijay Singh's proxy war |work=Rediff.com |date=5 February 1998 |access-date=20 March 2013}}</ref> | |||
*In 2001, during an ] raid on a liquor manufacturer in ], income tax authorities seized a diary maintained by the distillery's owners. They found the names of several officials and politicians of the state and their bribe money written against their names in the diary which reportedly also listed Digvijay Singh's name with a payment of 100 million ] against it. Digvijay Singh was the chief minister at the time.<ref name="rff">{{cite web|url=http://www.rediff.com/news/2001/sep/15buzz.htm|title=Liquorgate?|accessdate=2009-03-19}}</ref> Digvijay Singh said that this was a conspiracy by ] and ] to destabilize his government.<ref name="Hindu">{{cite news|url=http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/2001/08/30/stories/0230000m.htm|title=Digvijay hits back at Center |accessdate=2009-03-19 | location=Chennai, India|work=The Hindu |date=2001-08-30}}</ref> Digvijay Singh on his own had written to then Prime Minister Sh.Atal Bihari Vajpayee on 28 August 2001 requesting for a CBI probe or by any other central agency he deemed appropriate. In his letter to Vajpayee, Digvijay said that he greatly valued probity in public life and would like his own to be transparent and accountable. He added that his personal property records had also been regularly tabled in the state assembly. He also attached a copy of the property records for 2000 along with the letter to the Prime Minister.<ref>{{cite news|title=Digvijay fizzles in liquor scam.|url=http://www.accessmylibrary.com/article-1G1-79316663/digvijay-fizzles-liquor-scam.html|accessdate=8 April 2013|date=20 October 2011}}</ref> <ref>{{cite web|author=Sudhir Singh, TNN Aug 28, 2001, 06.54pm IST |url=http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2001-08-28/india/27248535_1_digvijay-prime-minister-diary-entries |title=Digvijay clarifies stand in bribery case - Times Of India |publisher=Articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com |date=2001-08-28 |accessdate=2013-03-20}}</ref> | |||
The ], of which Madhya Pradesh is a part, has a significant number of economically and socially disadvantaged ] and ] communities. Through his policies, which have evoked both strong support and criticism among academics, Singh targeted the prospects of those people during his first term in office. These efforts attempted to arrest the declining support for the INC by those communities, who since the 1960s had increasingly been favouring the ] (BSP), the Jana Sangh and its political successor, the BJP. He followed the example set by ] in taking this approach, which was not adopted in other areas of the Belt such as ] and ]. Sudha Pai says, "He was driven by both the political imperative to sustain the base of the party among these social groups and ... a commitment to improving their socio-economic position." The "Dalit Agenda" that resulted from the ] in 2002 epitomised the strategy, which by Digvijaya Singh's time was more necessary than during Arjun Singh's period in power because one outcome of the ] had been increased Dalit desires for self-assertion. His approach to reform in what was still largely a feudal society was driven by a top-down strategy to achieve Dalit and Tribal support, as opposed to the bottom-up strategy of other belt leaders such as ], who lacked Singh's upper caste/class status and harnessed the desire for empowerment in the depressed communities through ]. Among the measures introduced to achieve his aim were the Education Guarantee Scheme (EGS), redistribution of common grazing land (''charnoi'') to landless dalits and tribals, free electricity for farmers, the promotion of ] as a means of delegating power to villagers and a supplier diversity scheme which guaranteed that thirty per cent of government supplies would be purchased from the disadvantaged groups. There was less emphasis than previously on methods of assistance that were focused on ].<ref>{{cite book |title=Developmental State and the Dalit Question in Madhya Pradesh: Congress Response |first=Sudha |last=Pai |publisher=Routledge |year=2013 |isbn=9781136197857 |pages=11–15 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tTeF4sMIlZQC&pg=PA11}}</ref><ref name="Phadnis2009">{{cite book |title=Business Standard Political Profiles of Cabals and Kings |editor-first=Aditi |editor-last=Phadnis |editor-link=Aditi Phadnis |publisher=Business Standard Books |year=2009 |isbn=9788190573542 |pages=194–195 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qT7QvviGoJsC&pg=PA194}}</ref>{{efn|The grazing land was redistributed in two phases, in 1998 and 2001, and saw the proportion such land in the state fall from 7.5 per cent to 2 per cent of total area, with the difference being given to landless agricultural labourers. The value of the transferred land was {{INRConvert|3750|c|year=2001|to=USD EUR GBP}}<ref>{{cite book |chapter=Tribal Livelihood Options: Socio-Ecological Changes, State Intervention and Sustainable Development |first1=D. K. |last1=Verma |first2=A. |last2=Sohrot |title=Tribal Development Since Independence |editor-first=Shyam Nandan |editor-last=Chaudhary |publisher=Concept Publishing Company |year=2009 |isbn=9788180696220 |page=182 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KBX1EJVhjGEC&pg=PA182}}</ref>}} | |||
], at Rashtrapati Bhavan, in New Delhi on 5 May 1997]] | |||
Returning to the Raghogarh constituency for the 1998 elections,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.empoweringindia.org/new/constituency.aspx?eid=708&cid=31 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140531125104/http://www.empoweringindia.org/new/constituency.aspx?eid=708&cid=31 |url-status=usurped |archive-date=31 May 2014 |title=Raghogarh Assembly Election 1998, Madhya Pradesh |publisher=The Liberty Institute |access-date=5 August 2013}}</ref> Singh was re-elected and appointed by ] to serve a second term as chief minister.<ref>{{cite book |title=Developmental State and the Dalit Question in Madhya Pradesh: Congress Response |first=Sudha |last=Pai |publisher=Routledge |year=2013 |isbn=9781136197857 |page=115 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tTeF4sMIlZQC&pg=PA115}}</ref> Census data suggests that Singh's education reforms had become a particularly successful aspect of his government. Those reforms included the construction of thousands of new village schools under the EGS, and may have been significant in increasing the literacy rate in Madhya Pradesh from 45 per cent in 1991 to 64 per cent in 2001. The improvement among girls was particularly high, growing from 29 per cent to 50 per cent.<ref name="Widmalm2008">{{cite book |title=Decentralisation, Corruption and Social Capital: From India to the West |first=Sten |last=Widmalm |publisher=SAGE Publications |year=2008 |isbn=9780761936640 |pages=75–76 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OlxModpUp0MC&pg=PA75}}</ref>{{efn|Singh has claimed that 24,000 new schools were opened in the state during his time as Chief Minister.<ref name="Widmalm2008" /> 26,571 habitations gained a school according to the ].<ref name="Manor2004">{{cite journal |journal=India Seminar |first=James |last=Manor |url=http://www.india-seminar.com/2004/534/534%20james%20manor.htm |date=February 2004 |title=Congress Defeat in MP}}</ref>}} In his second term as Chief Minister, Singh sought to extend his decentralising, socially beneficial ideas by instituting reforms in healthcare that would guarantee a minimum level of care at ] level by financing the training of locally nominated healthcare professionals. This mirrored his earlier efforts in education and was known as the Healthcare Guarantee Scheme.<ref>{{cite book |title=Decentralisation, Corruption and Social Capital: From India to the West |first=Sten |last=Widmalm |publisher=SAGE Publications |year=2008 |isbn=9780761936640 |page=86 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OlxModpUp0MC&pg=PA86}}</ref> | |||
] gained administrative independence from Madhya Pradesh in 2001 under the terms of the ].<ref>{{cite web|title=Chhattisgarh state — history |url=http://cg.gov.in/profile/corigin.htm#prathak |publisher=Government of Chhattisgarh |access-date=4 August 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100704202817/http://cg.gov.in/profile/corigin.htm |archive-date=4 July 2010 }}</ref> Singh was directed by Sonia Gandhi to ensure the selection of ] as the Chief Minister for the new state and this Singh did, although Jogi had been critical of his style of politics and Singh had personally preferred not to see him installed to that office. While Singh managed to convince the majority of Congress Legislator Party members to back Ajit Jogi, the absence of ] and his supporters at the meeting raised questions about the exercise of seeking consensus because Shukla was the other main contender for the post.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.frontlineonnet.com/fl1723/17230320.htm |title=The birth of Chhattisgarh |publisher=Frontline |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071018020947/http://frontlineonnet.com/fl1723/17230320.htm |archive-date=18 October 2007 |first=V. |last=Venkatesan}}</ref> Subsequently, Singh met with Shukla in order to allay concerns.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.telegraphindia.com/india/basu-parting-gift-to-hotel/cid/882146|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304213406/http://www.telegraphindia.com/1001101/front_pa.htm|url-status=dead|title=BASU PARTING GIFT TO HOTEL|archive-date=4 March 2016|website=www.telegraphindia.com|access-date=19 March 2020}}</ref><ref> {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303230510/http://www.tribuneindia.com/2000/20001104/nation.htm |date=3 March 2016 }}. The Tribune, 3 November 2001</ref> | |||
*In October, 2012, ] ordered ] to probe the Treasure Island, ] scam against him in which Madhya Pradesh Lok Ayukta had registered a ] in 2004 under the Prevention of Corruption Act to probe allegations of criminal conspiracy and corruption.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.hindu.com/2004/02/12/stories/2004021205351100.htm |title=Lok Ayukta case against Digvijay in land scam |work=The Hindu |date=2004-02-12 |accessdate=2010-06-13 |location=Chennai, India}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.indianexpress.com/news/probe-digvijay-singh-scam-hc-to-cbi/1018743 |title=Probe Digvijay Singh scam: HC to CBI |publisher=Indian Express |date=2012-10-18 |accessdate=2013-03-20}}</ref> | |||
Singh won the Raghogarh constituency again in 2003<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.empoweringindia.org/new/constituency.aspx?eid=203&cid=31 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130805023252/http://www.empoweringindia.org/new/constituency.aspx?eid=203&cid=31 |url-status=usurped |archive-date=5 August 2013 |title=Raghogarh Assembly Election 2003, Madhya Pradesh |publisher=The Liberty Institute |access-date=5 August 2013}}</ref> but his party overall was heavily defeated by the BJP, as it also was in ] and Chhattisgarh.<ref>{{cite book |chapter=The BJP and the 2004 general election |first=Christophe |last=Jaffrelot |author-link=Christophe Jaffrelot |title=Coalition Politics and Hindu Nationalism |editor1-first=Katharine |editor1-last=Adeney |editor2-first=Lawrence |editor2-last=Saez |publisher=Routledge |year=2005 |isbn=9781134239795 |page=237}}</ref> The defeat in Madhya Pradesh has been attributed in large part to deadlocks in the pursuit of development that had arisen as the Panchayati Raj and central government squabbled about the extent of their respective powers, and to frequent electrical ]. The latter resulted from thirty-two per cent of what had been the generation capacity of Madhya Pradesh now being in the new state of Chhattisgarh: while Chhattisgarh did not need all of that capacity, much of it had historically been used in the remainder of Madhya Pradesh, which now found itself having only around 50 per cent of the power that it required. ], a political journalist and author, also notes that in 1985, the state had been producing a surplus of electricity through a process of technical and administrative efficiency that was the envy of other areas and that then "The State Electricity Board began to be looked upon as a milch cow by successive politicians, Digvijay Singh included." Power was given away and no money was set aside for repairs and maintenance.<ref name="Phadnis2009" /> One of Singh's last proposals while in office was to write-off the electricity bills of 1.2 million people over the preceding three years. In this, he was thwarted by the ], which ruled the proposal to be a breach of election rules.<ref>{{cite book |title=Can Good Economics Ever be Good Politics?: Case Study of the Power Sector in India |first=Sumir |last=Lal |publisher=World Bank Publications |year=2006 |isbn=9780821366813 |pages=23–24 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=u4ygfk0_8m4C}}</ref> Singh had claimed that it was desirable because the farmers of the state — who needed electricity to power water pumps<ref name="Manor2004" /> — had suffered three years of ].<ref>{{cite news |title=Digvijay files papers from Raghogarh |date=15 November 2003 |url=http://www.hindu.com/2003/11/15/stories/2003111507230500.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040204012551/http://www.hindu.com/2003/11/15/stories/2003111507230500.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=4 February 2004 |work=] |access-date=5 August 2013}}</ref>], Santosh Kumar Shukla, Surendra Shukla and Lal Bahadur Singh (extreme left) at chief minister house, Shyamla hills Bhopal in 2002.]] | |||
*In December 2012 Digvijay Singh was granted anticipatory bail after then BJP president Nitin Gadkari took Singh to court over Digvijay's claim that Gadkari has links with various fake companies which were earning illegal profits, and also in Gadkari's hand in illegal coal block allocations. Singh had alleged that then BJP President Gadkari had pocketed the sum of Rs 490 core while illegally allocating coal blocks to BJP MP Ajay Sancheti. Digvijay said he stood by his views and would do more research to substantiate his claims about Gadkari. According to Digvijay: "Now I can say everything in front of the court the way Gadkari has worked as a businessman and how he has links with various other businessmen, which all companies of his were fake and how he earned profits." <ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.indianexpress.com/news/digvijay-singh-gets-anticipatory-bail-vows-revenge-against-nitin-gadkari/1048520|work=Indian Express|title=Digvijay Singh gets anticipatory bail, vows revenge against Nitin Gadkari|date=December 21 2012}}</ref> | |||
=== |
===Work at national level=== | ||
Following his party's defeat, Singh determined that he would not contest any polls for the next decade and the Raghogarh constituency was won by his cousin, ], at the next elections in 2008.<ref name="bs20120617">{{cite news |first=Kavita |last=Chowdhury |date=17 June 2012 |title=Oil firms should link petrol prices with global crude: Digvijay Singh |work=Business Standard|url=http://www.business-standard.com/article/opinion/oil-firms-should-link-petrol-prices-with-global-crude-digvijay-singh-112061700006_1.html |access-date=16 July 2013}}</ref> Singh shifted his attention to working for Congress from the centre, becoming a general secretary of the AICC and being involved in the party's organisation across several states, including ], ], ] and Uttar Pradesh.<ref name="bs20120617" /> | |||
In December 2010, Digvijay Singh gave several interviews in the Media claiming that Mumbai ATS Chief Mr. ] called him hours before he was killed, talking to him about threats to his (Karkare's) life from Hindu extremist groups. Hemant Karkare in his role as chief of the Mumbai ATS had found incriminating evidence implicating several individuals with known RSS links and was facing a barrage of attacks including from right-wing politicians. During the same time U.S. Wikileaks cables quoted cables sent by the U.S. Ambassador about Congress party "playing religious politics" and "crass political opportunism” in plating doubts regarding Mr. Karkare's murder by Pakistani terrorists.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/article946207.ece | location=Chennai, India |work=The Hindu | first=Narayan | last=Lakshman | title=Digvijay, Antulay statements showed "crass political opportunism": U.S. | date=2010-12-11}}</ref> A petition was filed in a local court against him, alleging that his remarks in connection with slain Maharashtra ATS chief Hemant Karkare, was an attempt to whip up communal frenzy.<ref></ref> However the ] government was unable to find any evidence that such a call occurred<ref> Indian Express – 16 December 2010</ref>Digvijay Singh proved his critics wrong when in a press conference on Jan 4th he gave the documentary proof of his conversation with Mr.Hemant Karkare. Singh released the details of the call records he obtained from BSNL's Bhopal office. "People called me a liar...I was dubbed a traitor and a Pakistani agent. It pained me that Mumbai Police made selective leaks saying that there were no records of the talks between me and Karkare," Digvijay said. He said a letter from BSNL about the call records proves what he had said. "The call came from his (Karkare's) office landline on my mobile phone number 9425015461," Singh said adding that Karkare's number was the official telephone number of the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad.According to the records released by Singh, the ATS chief rang him up at 17.44 hours and the conversation continued for more than six minutes. Hours later, Karkare was killed in the 26/11 terrorist attacks in Mumbai.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://news.outlookindia.com/items.aspx?artid=707223 |title=Digvijay Gives Proof of Conversation With Karkare |publisher=news.outlookindia.com |date= |accessdate=2013-03-20}}</ref><ref>{{dead link|date=March 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author=Posted by: Anita |url=http://news.oneindia.in/2011/01/04/digvijay-singh-gives-proof-of-karkare-call.html |title=Digvijay comes clean;shows proof on Karkare calls - Oneindia News |publisher=News.oneindia.in |date=2011-01-04 |accessdate=2013-03-20}}</ref>Coming on the eve of the ] cables, this caused a lot of heat in the media. Digvijay repeated the allegations in his address to the Congress plenary session saying that the right-wing extremism of the kind perpetrated by the RSS and SIMI represented a grave threat to national unity. Equating the RSS to the Nazis he said that ''The RSS, in the garb of its nationalist ideology, is targeting Muslims the same way Nazis targeted Jews in the 1930s''. Israel had taken grave exception to this comment.<ref></ref> He accused the RSS of being involved in a number of terrorist strikes across the country. Further in the same speech, he demanded a CBI enquiry into the mysterious murder of Sunil Joshi, an RSS activist accused of being involved in the ], alleging that Joshi was murdered because "he knew too much".<ref></ref>Digvijay’s contention was proved correct when NIA (National Investigation Agency) and states ATS found proof of right wing extremists being involved in 2006 Malegaon Blasts, Mecca Masjid Bombing (Hyderabad), Samjhauta Express Bomibings and Ajmer Sharif Dargah Blasts.<ref>{{cite web|author=Rajinder Nagarkoti, TNN Dec 21, 2010, 02.49pm IST |url=http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2010-12-21/india/28220442_1_swami-asimanand-mecca-masjid-blast-samjhauta-expres |title=Mecca Masjid blast accused also linked to Samjhauta train attack: NIA - Times Of India |publisher=Articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com |date= |accessdate=2013-03-20}}</ref>Digvijay was proven correct about Sunil Joshi too as the investigations and the charge sheets filed in court are on the lines of what he has been stating publicly at various forums.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://ibnlive.in.com/news/hindu-hardliners-killed-joshi-mp-police/144775-3.html |title=Hindu hardliners killed Joshi: MP Police |publisher=Ibnlive.in.com |date= |accessdate=2013-03-20}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://ibnlive.in.com/news/ats-finds-another-rss-link-to-ajmer-blast/133974-37.html |title=ATS finds another RSS link to Ajmer blast |publisher=Ibnlive.in.com |date=2010-10-28 |accessdate=2013-03-20}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rediff.com/news/report/why-cracking-sunil-joshis-murder-case-is-critical-for-nia/20120117.htm |title=Why cracking Sunil Joshi's murder case is critical for NIA - Rediff.com India News |publisher=Rediff.com |date= |accessdate=20130320</ref<ref{{citeweb|url=http://www.hindu.com/2011/02/27/stories/2011022762640100.htm |title=Front Page : Sadhvi Pragyasingh arrested in Sunil Joshi murder case |publisher=The Hindu |date= |accessdate=2013-03-20}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://zeenews.india.com/news/nation/sunil-joshi-murder-case-chargesheet-against-pragya-filed_690551.html |title=Sunil Joshi murder case: Chargesheet against Pragya filed |publisher=Zeenews.india.com |date=2011-03-02 |accessdate=2013-03-20}}</ref> | |||
In 2012, Singh said that there was a need for younger people to be involved in state assemblies and that he had no further interest in contesting state elections. He expressed a willingness to contest the 2014 Lok Sabha elections if Congress wanted him to do so; he also said that he would like to see his son as the incumbent of the Raghogarh constituency.<ref name="bs20120617" /><ref>{{cite news|title=Digvijay Singh may contest 2014 Lok Sabha polls if 'party allows'|url=http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2012-11-04/news/34907125_1_nitin-gadkari-bjp-president-digvijay-singh|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121107022955/http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2012-11-04/news/34907125_1_nitin-gadkari-bjp-president-digvijay-singh|url-status=dead|archive-date=7 November 2012|access-date=21 May 2013|newspaper=Economic Times|date=4 November 2012}}</ref> His son, ], was accompanied by his father when he joined the INC in June 2013 after previous involvement in its youth section. Mool Singh, the incumbent MLA, announced then that he would not be contesting his Raghogarh Assembly seat in the forthcoming elections, paving the way for Jaivardhan to be elected in a form of dynastic succession that is a feature of politics in India.<ref>{{cite news |work=The Hindu|title=Another 'son rise' in political firmament |first=Pheroze L. |last=Vincent |date=23 June 2013 |url=http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/other-states/another-son-rise-in-political-firmament/article4841319.ece |access-date=5 August 2013}}</ref> | |||
In January 2014, he was elected as a member of parliament to the Rajya Sabha from Madhya Pradesh.<ref name="RS2014">{{cite news | url=http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/sharad-pawar-digvijaya-singh-kumari-selja-among-37-elected-unopposed-to-rajya-sabha-477920 | title=Sharad Pawar, Digvijaya Singh, Kumari Selja among 37 elected unopposed to Rajya Sabha | work=NDTV | date=13 January 2014 | agency=Press Trust of India | access-date=9 June 2014}}</ref> | |||
===Stand on Batla House Encounter Case=== | |||
Digvijay Singh suggested that the ], which led to the death of two suspected terrorists and one police officer, was fake.<ref> Pioneer – 3 June 2011</ref> | |||
However, Union Home Minister ] dismissed Singh's claim as well as the demand for a judicial probe by saying that several probes had proved Batla House to be a genuine encounter and there was no scope for reopening the case. Congress Party to which Singh belongs also distance itself and rejected his views that the encounter was stage-managed. Congress spokesman said that ] should not be politicized or raked up for political gains. Singh's continuous extreme stand on several issue invited criticism from several quarters including the opposition ] (BJP).<ref> Times of India - Jan 14, 2012</ref> | |||
In Batla House encounter case the media came up with certain questions which remain unanswered. The two young boys gunned down in the Batla House encounter, widely perceived to be fake, were hit by "blunt force impact by object or surface", besides multiple gunshot wounds. This fact was revealed in the post-mortem reports of Atif Ameen, 24, and Mohd Sajid, 18, provided by the NHRC, consequent to a RTI filed by a dogged Jamia Millia Islamia student. People in the neighbourhood have some other story. They say the operation started in the wee hours of Thursday and around 10 the encounter took place. They deny that there was any crossfire. They also deny there was any announcement by the police.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.hindustantimes.com/News-Feed/ColumnsOthers/Who-s-afraid-of-Batla-House/Article1-748179.aspx |title=Who's afraid of Batla House? |publisher=Hindustan Times |date=2011-09-20 |accessdate=2013-03-20}}</ref> | |||
Singh has been criticised by his opposition<!--There maybe some more contemporaries, critics, but as per source it is the opposition, so keeping 'opposition' for a word--> for ],<ref>{{cite news|url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/lucknow/Digvijay-should-be-last-person-to-point-fingers/articleshow/8084797.cms |title=Digvijay should be last person to point fingers |work=The Times of India |date=25 April 2011 |access-date=30 May 2014}}</ref> which he denied.<ref>{{cite news|title=BJP could never prove corruption charges against me, Digvijaya Singh says|url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/BJP-could-never-prove-corruption-charges-against-me-Digvijaya-Singh-says/articleshow/14560022.cms|date=1 July 2013}}</ref> In 2011, a charge sheet was submitted in court against him<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/file-charge-sheet-against-digvijay-says-court/article1718846.ece |title=File charge sheet against Digvijay, says court |newspaper=The Hindu |date=23 April 2011 |access-date=30 May 2014}}</ref> but the ] (CBI) determined in March 2014 that there was no case to answer.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Treasure-Island-case-Digvijay-Singh-gets-clean-chit-from-CBI/articleshow/32413463.cms=|title=Treasure Island Case: Digvijaya gets clean chit from CBI|work=The Times of India |date=21 March 2014 }}{{dead link|date=April 2015}}</ref> | |||
===Views on Religion and Religious Extremism=== | |||
*Reacting to statements that he is anti-hindu, Singh has said in an interview that he was a better Hindu and followed Hinduism better than RSS.<ref></ref>Digvijay Singh in his blog stated I am a practicing Hindu. I was given diksha by his holiness Jagadguru Shankaracharya of Dwarka and Joshi Math in 1983.I regularly pray every day for half an hour and have been doing this since 1969 when I was given Gayatri Mantra after I got my ' Yagyo Pavit Sansakar '. I have nine temples at my residence at Raghogarh in Guna District MP. Pooja is performed every day according to the traditions as prescribed by my religion. This has been going on for more than 14 generations in all the above temples.<ref>{{cite web|author=Digvijaya Singh |url=http://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/digvijay-singhs-blog/entry/hindutva |title=Hindutva by Digvijaya Singh's Blog : Digvijaya Singh's blog-The Times Of India |publisher=Blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com |date= |accessdate=2013-03-20}}</ref> | |||
*Digvijay Singh has claimed that as Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh he was the first person to seek a ban on the now banned SIMI (Students Islamic Movement of India) and also the Bajrang Dal. Digvijay Singh has claimed that Hindu and Muslim Extremism feed each other. <ref>{{cite news|url= | |||
http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2012-12-21/news/35953555_1_students-islamic-movement-simi-digvijay-singh|work=Economic Times|title=Digvijay, MP Home Minister trade charges over banned SIMI | |||
|date=December 21 2012}}</ref> | |||
*In the wake of the killing of ], Digvijay Singh stated that "Osama is a terrorist and deserves the treatment he got. But at the same time, the worst of criminals should be buried or cremated according to their faith."<ref> Rediff – 3 May 2011</ref> | |||
In June 2015, Singh petitioned the Supreme Court, pleading for a CBI probe into the ]. He claimed to have interacted with a whistleblower who had revealed sensitive information to him.<ref>{{cite news |title=Digvijaya moves Supreme Court for CBI probe into Vyapam cases|url=http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-newdelhi/a-slice-of-history-from-the-buddha-to-nehru/article3033458.ece|date=14 December 2006|newspaper=The Hindu|access-date=6 July 2015}}</ref> The CBI dismissed the claim in November 2017, raising the possibility that Singh could be prosecuted for fabricating evidence.<ref>{{cite news |title=CBI lets Shivraj Singh Chouhan off Vyapam hook, heat now on Digvijaya|url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/cbi-lets-shivraj-singh-chouhan-off-vyapam-hook-heat-now-on-digvijaya/articleshow/61378016.cms|date=1 November 2017|work=The Times of India|access-date=19 November 2017}}</ref> | |||
===Stand on Anna Hazare, Baba Ramdev, and Arvind Kejriwal=== | |||
Digvijay Singh was very critical about Anti-Corruption Movement of Social Activist ] & Yog Guru ] ever since they started their agitation. He described Anna Hazare as a simple-minded villager, but spoke against other members of ] like ].<ref> Indian Express, Agencies : New Delhi, Fri Apr 15 2011</ref> | |||
In the ], he ran for ] in the constituency of ], but lost to ].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.ndtv.com/people/pragya-thakur-malegaon-accused-leads-in-bhopal-digvijaya-singh-trails-2042123|title=Pragya Thakur, Malegaon Accused, Defeats Digvijaya Singh By Over 3 Lakh Votes In Bhopal|website=NDTV.com|language=en|access-date=24 May 2019}}</ref> | |||
As events unfolded the points raised by Digvijay Singh turned out to be a bitter truth for Anna’s team and followers: | |||
The RSS Chief publicly stated that “Anna & RSS go back a long way”<ref>{{cite web|author=FP Staff |url=http://www.firstpost.com/politics/rss-urged-anna-hazare-to-start-anti-corruption-campaign-mohanrao-bhagwat-127877.html |title=Anna and RSS links go back a long way: RSS Chief |publisher=Firstpost |date= |accessdate=2013-03-20}}</ref> Further, a letter of support from RSS functionary Sunil Joshi came in the public domain.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://ibnlive.in.com/news/digvijaya-claims-to-have-proof-of-rssanna-ties/192420-37-64.html |title=Digvijaya claims to have proof of RSS-Anna ties |publisher=Ibnlive.in.com |date=2011-10-12 |accessdate=2013-03-20}}</ref> | |||
Even Anna’s own aide Ashok Sabban, who has been with Hazare for 20 years stating “IAC is 100 per cent a front of the RSS,”(3).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.indianexpress.com/news/iac--100--rss-front--longtime-aides-tell-anna-to-correct-course/897493/ |title=IAC ‘100% RSS front’: Long-time aides tell Anna to correct course |publisher=Indian Express |date=2012-01-09 |accessdate=2013-03-20}}</ref> | |||
Swami Agnivesh an erstwhile member of IAC accused Kejriwal of siphoning money during Anna’s fast.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.theweekendleader.com/Causes/766/call-to-account.html |title=‘Kejriwal siphoned Rs.70-80 lakh during Anna Hazare's 12-day fast’ | Causes | New Delhi |publisher=Theweekendleader.com |date=2011-10-22 |accessdate=2013-03-20}}</ref> Now the situation is that Anna has disbanded his team<ref>http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/team-anna-disbanded-blogs-anna-hazare-creating-surprise-and-regret-251712</ref> He has also gone to the extent that he has prohibited Arvind Kejriwal from using his photograph or name in his new political venture<ref>http://zeenews.india.com/news/nation/anna-parts-ways-with-kejriwal-asks-not-to-use-his-name-photo_800572.html</ref> | |||
In the ], he ran for ] in the constituency of ], and lost to ] candidate ] by a margin of 146,089 votes.<ref>{{cite web |title=General Election to Parliamentary Constituencies: Trends & Results June-2024 Parliamentary Constituency 20 - RAJGARH (Madhya Pradesh) |url=https://results.eci.gov.in/PcResultGenJune2024/ConstituencywiseS1220.htm |website=Election Commission of India |access-date=6 June 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Rajgarh Lok Sabha Seat Result 2024: Rodmal Nagar Defeats Digvijaya Singh |url=https://www.etvbharat.com/en/!state/election-2024-result-madhya-pradesh-rajgarh-lok-sabha-seat-winner-rodmal-nagar-bjp-digvijaya-singh-congress-latest-update-enn24060204786 |work=ETV Bharat News |date=4 June 2024 |access-date=6 June 2024}}</ref> | |||
Singh had compared Kejriwal with ] actress ] on ] stating that "They both try and expose but with no substance". Sawant had later filed a police complaint against him and had file a defamation suit for {{INR}} 50 Crores.<ref>http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report_digvijay-singh-attacked-my-noble-character-rakhi-sawant_1763750</ref> | |||
==Controversies== | |||
===Stand on Narendra Modi=== | |||
In 1998, 19<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.outlookindia.com/magazine/story/massacre-at-multai/204967|title=Massacre At Multai|work=outlookindia.com/|access-date=10 June 2017}}</ref> to 24<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.rediff.com/news/1998/may/22farm.htm|title=Rediff On The NeT: Frame policy to end farmers's woes: former PMs|website=www.rediff.com|access-date=10 June 2017}}</ref> farmers were shot dead by Madhya Pradesh police.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.oneindia.com/india/recalling-digvijayas-firing-squads-of-mutlai-uncanny-similarities-with-mandsaur-2457930.html|title=Recalling Digvijaya's firing squads of Mutlai: Uncanny similarities with Mandsaur|work=www.oneindia.com|access-date=10 June 2017|language=en}}</ref> Singh was Chief Minister of the state at the time and the ] (PUCL) blamed him for arresting farmers' leaders.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.pucl.org/Topics/Law/2012/sunilam.html|title=The Conviction of Dr. Sunilam and others in the Multai police firing case of 1998 in which 24 farmers were killed by police bullets: A critique of the judgements|last=(PUCL)|first=People's Union for Civil Liberties|website=www.pucl.org|access-date=10 June 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171231212447/http://www.pucl.org/Topics/Law/2012/sunilam.html|archive-date=31 December 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref> | |||
*Digvijay Singh has asked Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi to come clean on whether he is married or not in view of reports that Narendra Modi is married. He has also criticized Modi for calling Congress minister Shashi Tharoor's wife a '50 crore girlfriend'. Singh claimed that Modi's remark was not directed just at Tharoor's wife but was an attack on all women. <ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.indianexpress.com/news/why-is-narendra-modi-hiding-his-wifes-name-asks-digvijay/1025201|work=Indian Express|title=Why is Narendra Modi hiding his wife's name, asks Digvijay|date=November 1 2012}}</ref> <ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/what-is-the-missus-called-digvijaya-singh-asks-narendra-modi-287328|work=NDTV|title=What is the missus called, Digvijaya Singh asks Narendra Modi|date=November 1 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.openmedianetwork.in/article/nation/i-am-narendra-modi-s-wife|work=OPEN|title=“I am Narendra Modi’s Wife”|date=April 11 2009}}</ref> | |||
Following the ], Singh faced widespread condemnation for launching a book which mentioned that the ] was somehow linked to the attack.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.firstpost.com/india/after-nawaz-sharifs-admission-of-pakistan-role-in-2611-time-congress-apologised-to-rss-india-4467507.html |title=After Nawaz Sharif's admission of Pakistan role in 26/11, time Congress apologised to RSS, India |first=Raghav |last=Pandey |date=13 May 2018 |website=Firstpost |access-date=22 May 2019 |archive-date=7 August 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190807084400/https://www.firstpost.com/india/after-nawaz-sharifs-admission-of-pakistan-role-in-2611-time-congress-apologised-to-rss-india-4467507.html |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=28 December 2010 |title=RSS & 26/11: Digvijaya flags it off again,this time in Mumbai |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/news-archive/web/rss-26-11-digvijaya-flags-it-off-again-this-time-in-mumbai/ |access-date=15 October 2022 |website=The Indian Express}}</ref> Singh was also slammed for coining the terms "Saffron Terror" and "Hindu Terror". | |||
*Digvijay Singh has also accused Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi of hiring Public Relations firms to boost Modi's image and spread false facts about Gujarat. Contrary to what Modi has been claiming, Gujarat has the lowest Human Development Index (HDI) in India and it is a state ridden with enormous debts according to Singh. Taking a jibe at Modi, Singh said, "I congratulate those who named Modi as 'Feku' (bragger). I am surprised how much he boasts about himself. Unlike his claims, it is Maharashtra which attracted the highest FDI and not Gujarat. The per capita income of people in Gujarat is not the highest and it does not attract any investment in agriculture." Digvijay also said that Gujarat is "ridden" with a huge debt, "but Modi claims that he will repay the debt of the Mother India." <ref>{{cite news|url=http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/modi-hiring-pr-firms-to-boost-his-image-digvijay-singh/articleshow/19615165.cms|work=Economic Times|title=Modi hiring PR firms to boost his image: Digvijay Singh|date=April 18 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.indianexpress.com/news/modi-hiring-pr-firms-to-boost-his-image-digvijay/1104579/|work=Indian Express|title=Modi hiring PR firms to boost his image: Digvijay|date=April 19 2013}}</ref> | |||
A comment by Singh in 2011 led to disagreements within his party. He stated that the ], which led to the death of two terrorists and one police officer, was fake. The Union Home Minister, ], dismissed Singh's claim and his demand for a further judicial investigation into it. Congress rejected his views that the encounter was stage-managed, stating that the encounter should not be politicised or raked up for political gains. Singh's stand on the Batla House encounter led to criticism from the opposition BJP.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/After-government-Congress-too-ticks-off-Digvijaya-Singh-on-Batla-House-encounter/articleshow/11482604.cms |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120712195431/http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2012-01-14/india/30627425_1_batla-house-encounter-judicial-inquiry-judicial-probe |url-status=live |archive-date=12 July 2012 |title=After government, Congress too ticks off Digvijaya Singh on Batla House encounter |date=14 January 2012 |work=] |access-date=8 August 2013}}</ref> | |||
===Stand on Sushma Swaraj=== | |||
Digvijay Singh has compared senior BJP leader Sushma Swaraj to former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and has declared her fit to be Prime Minister. According to Digvijay: "In British Parliament, the Leader of Opposition is considered the shadow Prime Minister. If we go by that system, Sushma should be the shadow Prime Minister here also. But I was surprised when Sushma declared someone else as the contender of PM's post in Gujarat." Digvijay also said the BJP leader matches with the liberal and moderate face of Vajpayee and will be acceptable to other political parties also. "In BJP, a moderate face is seen in Vajpayee... In today's environment, if there is any person who will be acceptable to other parties, it will be Sushma ji. Because she does not have the RSS tag behind her and after Vajpayee, if there is any person with a moderate and liberal face, it is Sushma," Singh added. Downplaying Singh's praise, Sushma said the Congress leader has an old habit of creating disputes."Digvijay Singh has an old habit of creating disputes and the same thing he did here today. There are several ways of creating disputes and too much praise is one such way. Today he used the same method here," she said.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.indianexpress.com/news/digvijay-singh-compares-sushma-swaraj-to-atal-behari-vajpayee-says-she-is-fit-to-be-pm/1041391|work=Indian Express|title=Digvijay Singh compares Sushma Swaraj to Atal Behari Vajpayee, says she is fit to be PM|date=December 6 2012}}</ref> | |||
In 2013, Singh described ], a female Congress MP from ], as "''sau tunch maal''" ("totally unblemished goods")—a colloquialism '']'' described as "frequently used loosely to describe a woman as 'sexy'". Advocates for women's rights were upset by Singh's comment and called for Congress to act against him. However, the MP backed Singh and said he meant that she was like "pure gold"; ''The Times of India'' commented that "''tunch maal''" is "also a trade jargon among jewelers to describe the level of purity of the yellow metal" and added that Singh prefaced his comment about Natarajan by describing himself as a "political goldsmith".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Digvijaya-calls-Meenakshi-Natarajan-sau-tunch-maal-rapped-for-sexist-remark/articleshow/21380305.cms |title=Digvijaya calls Meenakshi Natarajan 'sau tunch maal', rapped for sexist remark |date=27 July 2013 |work=The Times of India |access-date=1 August 2017 }}</ref> | |||
===Stand on Arun Jaitley=== | |||
Digvijay Singh has hit out at BJP leader Arun Jaitley for claiming that retired judges should not be given post-retirement jobs in government. According to Digvijay, Jaitley "conveniently forgets that as a law minister he himself made post retirement appointments of mediocre judges with known leanings towards BJP." <ref>{{cite news|url=http://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/digvijay-singhs-blog/entry/arun-jaitley-s-ctiticism-of-justice-katju-s-appointment-uncalled-for|work=Times of India|title=Arun Jaitley's criticism of Justice Katju's appointment uncalled for|date=February 18 2013}}</ref> | |||
Singh criticised the United States in 2011 for not respecting ]'s religion when it ], saying "however big a criminal one might be, his religious traditions should be respected while burying him." Congress's leadership distanced itself from his views. Singh later said that his statement should not be interpreted as support for or opposition to bin Laden, adding "I had merely said that the worst of criminals should be cremated according to their faith. He is a terrorist and he deserved the treatment that he got."<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ndtv.com/india-news/trouble-over-digvijaya-remarks-on-osama-funeral-454693 |title=Trouble over Digvijaya remarks on Osama funeral |date=3 May 2011 |publisher=] |access-date=1 August 2017 }}</ref> | |||
===Thackeray Family Controversy=== | |||
Digvijay Singh has pointed out that according to the autobiography of former Shiv Sena leader Bal Thackeray's father, the Thackerays were originally from Bihar and migrated to Bhopal and later to Pune in search of employment opportunities. Raj Thackeray had threatened to brand all Biharis in Maharashtra as infiltrators, and according to Digvijay Raj should desist from making this claim since Raj himself belongs to Bihar.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://zeenews.india.com/news/maharashtra/book-shows-raj-thackeray-belongs-to-bihar_797950.html|work=Zee News|title=Book shows Raj Thackeray belongs to Bihar|date=September 6 2012}}. </ref>Uddhav Thackeray of Shiv Sena had also made a demand for a permit system for all Biharis. Uddhav reacted to Digvijay's statement by calling him 'mad' and claiming he does not understand the context since he does not know Marathi. However, the book of Bal Thackeray's father Prabodhankar Thackeray was published when the BJP-Shiv Sena combine was in power in Maharashtra. As per Digvijay, page number 45 of the book has detailed the Thackeray family’s travel from Magadh in Bihar to Bhopal in Madhya Pradesh, then to Chittorgarh in Rajasthan, and then to Madhavgarh in Pune, Maharashtra. Digvijay has expressed surprise that the Thackerays are not believing what their own grandfather has written. <ref>{{cite news|url=http://zeenews.india.com/news/maharashtra/thackerays-are-from-bihar-digvijay-mad-says-uddhav_798025.html|work=Zee News|title=Thackerays are from Bihar: Digvijay mad, says Uddhav|date=September 6 2012}}</ref> <ref>{{cite news|url=http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/uddhav-thackeray-calls-digvijaya-a-mad-dishwasher/1/216288.html|work=India Today|title=Uddhav Thackeray dares Digvijaya, calls him a 'mad dishwasher'|date=September 6 2012}}</ref>. | |||
In March 2022, Digvijay Singh along with six others was sentenced for one year rigorous imprisonment by an Indore court in connection with clash with BJYM workers in 2011.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Desk |first=India TV News |date=26 March 2022 |title=Ex-Madhya Pradesh CM Digvijaya Singh sentenced one-year jail term in Ujjain assault case |url=https://www.indiatvnews.com/news/india/digvijaya-singh-one-year-jail-term-ujjain-assault-case-ex-madhya-pradesh-cm-congress-leader-latest-updates-2022-03-26-766099 |access-date=27 March 2022 |website=www.indiatvnews.com |language=en}}</ref> | |||
==Views on Hindu nationalist groups== | |||
Singh has said that the right-wing extremism of the ] (RSS) and ] (SIMI) represented a grave threat to national unity. He stated that "The RSS, in the garb of its nationalist ideology, is targeting Muslims the same way Nazis targeted Jews in the 1930s". Israel has protested this comment.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Israel-protests-comparison-of-RSS-with-Nazis/articleshow/7134726.cms |title=Israel protests comparison of RSS with Nazis |work=The Times of India|date=21 December 2010 |access-date=8 August 2013}}</ref> He believes the RSS was involved in a number of terrorist strikes including the ].<ref>{{Cite web |date=28 December 2010 |title=RSS & 26/11: Digvijaya flags it off again, this time in Mumbai |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/news-archive/web/rss-26-11-digvijaya-flags-it-off-again-this-time-in-mumbai/ |access-date=15 October 2022 |website=The Indian Express |language=en}}</ref> He requested a CBI enquiry into the murder of Sunil Joshi, an RSS pracharak involved in the ], alleging that Joshi was murdered because "he knew too much".<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.zeenews.com/news675416.html |title=Cong plenary to seek probe into right-wing terror |date=19 December 2010 |publisher=Zee News |access-date=8 August 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101220093325/http://www.zeenews.com/news675416.html |archive-date=20 December 2010 }}</ref> | |||
==Notes== | |||
{{notelist}} | |||
==References== | ==References== | ||
{{reflist |
{{reflist}} | ||
==Further reading== | |||
* {{cite book |title=India's Silent Revolution: The Rise of the Lower Castes in North India |first=Christophe |last=Jaffrelot |author-link=Christophe Jaffrelot |publisher=C. Hurst & Co. |year=2003 |isbn=9781850656708 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OAkW94DtUMAC&pg=PA441}} | |||
==External links== | |||
{{Commons category|Digvijaya Singh}} | |||
{{Official website|http://www.digvijayasingh.in/home.html}} | |||
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Latest revision as of 15:30, 25 December 2024
14th Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh, India For other people named Digvijay Singh, see Digvijay Singh.
Digvijaya Singh | |
---|---|
Singh in 2020 | |
Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha | |
Incumbent | |
Assumed office 10 April 2014 | |
Preceded by | Raghunandan Sharma |
Constituency | Madhya Pradesh |
14th Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh | |
In office 7 December 1993 – 8 December 2003 | |
Preceded by | President's rule |
Succeeded by | Uma Bharati |
Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha | |
In office 1984–1989 | |
Preceded by | Pandit Vasantkumar Ramkrishna |
Succeeded by | Pyarelal Khandelwal |
Constituency | Rajgarh |
In office 1991–1994 | |
Preceded by | Pyarelal Khandelwal |
Succeeded by | Lakshman Singh |
Constituency | Rajgarh |
Member of Madhya Pradesh Legislative Assembly | |
In office 1998 (1998)–2008 (2008) | |
Preceded by | Lakshman Singh |
Succeeded by | Mool Singh |
Constituency | Raghogarh |
In office 1994 (1994)–1998 (1998) | |
Preceded by | Shivnarayan Meena |
Succeeded by | Shivnarayan Meena |
Constituency | Chachoura |
In office 1977 (1977)–1984 (1984) | |
Preceded by | Harlal Shakyawar |
Succeeded by | Mool Singh |
Constituency | Raghogarh |
Personal details | |
Born | (1947-02-28) 28 February 1947 (age 77) Indore, Holkar State, British India (now in Madhya Pradesh, India) |
Political party | Indian National Congress |
Spouses |
|
Children | 5, including Jaivardhan Singh |
Alma mater | Shri Govindram Seksaria Institute of Technology and Science (SGSITS) Indore |
Profession | Politician, agriculturist |
Website | DigvijayaSingh.in |
Nickname | Diggi Raja |
Digvijaya Singh (born 28 February 1947) is an Indian politician and a Member of Parliament in the Rajya Sabha since 2014. He is a senior leader of the Indian National Congress and Ex-General Secretary of the Indian National Congress party's All India Congress Committee. Previously, he had served as the 14th and 15th Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh, a central Indian state, in two terms from 1993 to 1998 and from 1998 to 2003. Prior to that he was a minister in Chief Minister Arjun Singh's cabinet between 1980 and 1984. In 2019 Indian general election he was defeated by Pragya Singh Thakur for Bhopal Lok Sabha seat.
Personal life
Digvijaya Singh was born on 28 February 1947 in Indore in the princely state of Holkar of British India. His father, Balbhadra Singh, was the Raja of Raghogarh (under Gwalior State), presently known as Guna district of Madhya Pradesh, and a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) as independent candidate for the Raghogarh Vidhan Sabha constituency following the 1951 elections. He was educated at The Daly College, Indore and the Shri Govindram Seksaria Institute of Technology and Science (SGSITS) Indore, where he completed his B.E. in Mechanical Engineering.
Since 1969, he was married to Asha Singh, who died in 2013, and with whom he has four daughters and a son Jaivardhan Singh, who was member of Madhya Pradesh's 14th Vidhan Sabha serving as the Cabinet Minister of Urban Development and Housing. In April 2014, he confirmed that he was in a relationship with a Rajya Sabha TV anchor Amrita Rai; they married in late August 2015.
Narmada Yatra
The sacred Narmada River, the lifeline of Central India, is worshipped as Narmada maiyya (mother) or Ma Rewa (derived from “rev” meaning leaping one). One of the five holy rivers of India, it is the only one which has the tradition of being circumambulated from source to sea and back, on a pilgrimage or yatra.
Being the longest west-flowing river, the Narmada parikrama is a formidable spiritual exercise and challenge—an incredible journey of about 3,300 km.
Digvijaya Singh along with his wife started the Narmada Parikrama on 30 September 2017, from Barman Ghat, on banks of river Narmada after taking the blessing of his spiritual guru Shankaracharya Swami Swaroopanand Saraswati. The journey took them from Barman Ghat, on River Narmada southern banks, all the way to its mouth at Bharuch in Gujarat. At Bharuch, Mithi Talai is the point where the Narmada joins the Arabian Sea. Here they took a motorboat from the southern to the northern end and begin the return journey along its northern bank. On 9 April 2018 they completed the narmada parikrama at Barman Ghat having covered 3,300 kilometres (2,100 mi) by foot in 192 days.
Political career
MLA and MP, 1977–1993
Singh was president of the Raghogarh Nagar palika (a municipal committee) between 1969 and 1971. An offer in 1970 from Vijayaraje Scindia for him to join the Jana Sangh was not taken up and he subsequently joined the Congress party. He became a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) as the party's representative for the Raghogarh Vidhan Sabha constituency of the Madhya Pradesh Legislative Assembly in the 1977 elections. This was the same constituency that his father had won in 1951 as member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) as independent candidate for the Raghogarh Vidhan Sabha constituency following the 1951 elections. Digvijaya was later re-elected from the Raghogarh constituency and became a Minister of State and later a Cabinet Minister in the Madhya Pradesh state government led by Arjun Singh, whom he has called his mentor, between 1980 and 1984.
He was president of the Madhya Pradesh Congress Committee between 1985 and 1988, having been nominated by Rajiv Gandhi, and was re-elected in 1992. He had been elected as a member of the 8th Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Parliament of India, in the Indian general election of 1984, representing the Rajgarh Lok Sabha constituency. He was the first Congress politician to win the constituency, which had been created in 1977. Having won that contest by 150,000 votes, he lost the seat to Pyarelal Khandelwal of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) by 57,000 votes in the 1989 general election. He regained it in 1991, becoming a member of the 10th Lok Sabha.
Chief Minister, 1993–2003
In 1993, he resigned from the Lok Sabha because he had been appointed Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh. His brother, Lakshman Singh, had been elected in 1993 as a Congress MLA in Madhya Pradesh from the same Raghogarh assembly constituency that Digivijaya had previously held. Lakshman resigned from the seat in favour of Digvijaya, who needed to be elected to the Madhya Pradesh Legislative Assembly in order to fulfill his role as Chief Minister. However, the scheme failed when a petition was filed that challenged the validity of Lakshman's 1993 election. Digvijaya instead won the by-election from Chachoura constituency, which was vacated by the Former MLA Shivnarayan Meena that time for the purpose. The Hindi Belt, of which Madhya Pradesh is a part, has a significant number of economically and socially disadvantaged Dalit and tribal communities. Through his policies, which have evoked both strong support and criticism among academics, Singh targeted the prospects of those people during his first term in office. These efforts attempted to arrest the declining support for the INC by those communities, who since the 1960s had increasingly been favouring the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), the Jana Sangh and its political successor, the BJP. He followed the example set by Arjun Singh in taking this approach, which was not adopted in other areas of the Belt such as Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. Sudha Pai says, "He was driven by both the political imperative to sustain the base of the party among these social groups and ... a commitment to improving their socio-economic position." The "Dalit Agenda" that resulted from the Bhopal Conference in 2002 epitomised the strategy, which by Digvijaya Singh's time was more necessary than during Arjun Singh's period in power because one outcome of the Mandal Commission had been increased Dalit desires for self-assertion. His approach to reform in what was still largely a feudal society was driven by a top-down strategy to achieve Dalit and Tribal support, as opposed to the bottom-up strategy of other belt leaders such as Mayawati, who lacked Singh's upper caste/class status and harnessed the desire for empowerment in the depressed communities through identity politics. Among the measures introduced to achieve his aim were the Education Guarantee Scheme (EGS), redistribution of common grazing land (charnoi) to landless dalits and tribals, free electricity for farmers, the promotion of Panchayati Raj as a means of delegating power to villagers and a supplier diversity scheme which guaranteed that thirty per cent of government supplies would be purchased from the disadvantaged groups. There was less emphasis than previously on methods of assistance that were focused on reservation of jobs.
Returning to the Raghogarh constituency for the 1998 elections, Singh was re-elected and appointed by Sonia Gandhi to serve a second term as chief minister. Census data suggests that Singh's education reforms had become a particularly successful aspect of his government. Those reforms included the construction of thousands of new village schools under the EGS, and may have been significant in increasing the literacy rate in Madhya Pradesh from 45 per cent in 1991 to 64 per cent in 2001. The improvement among girls was particularly high, growing from 29 per cent to 50 per cent. In his second term as Chief Minister, Singh sought to extend his decentralising, socially beneficial ideas by instituting reforms in healthcare that would guarantee a minimum level of care at panchayat level by financing the training of locally nominated healthcare professionals. This mirrored his earlier efforts in education and was known as the Healthcare Guarantee Scheme.
Chhattisgarh gained administrative independence from Madhya Pradesh in 2001 under the terms of the Madhya Pradesh Reorganisation Act. Singh was directed by Sonia Gandhi to ensure the selection of Ajit Jogi as the Chief Minister for the new state and this Singh did, although Jogi had been critical of his style of politics and Singh had personally preferred not to see him installed to that office. While Singh managed to convince the majority of Congress Legislator Party members to back Ajit Jogi, the absence of Vidya Charan Shukla and his supporters at the meeting raised questions about the exercise of seeking consensus because Shukla was the other main contender for the post. Subsequently, Singh met with Shukla in order to allay concerns.
Singh won the Raghogarh constituency again in 2003 but his party overall was heavily defeated by the BJP, as it also was in Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh. The defeat in Madhya Pradesh has been attributed in large part to deadlocks in the pursuit of development that had arisen as the Panchayati Raj and central government squabbled about the extent of their respective powers, and to frequent electrical power cuts. The latter resulted from thirty-two per cent of what had been the generation capacity of Madhya Pradesh now being in the new state of Chhattisgarh: while Chhattisgarh did not need all of that capacity, much of it had historically been used in the remainder of Madhya Pradesh, which now found itself having only around 50 per cent of the power that it required. Aditi Phadnis, a political journalist and author, also notes that in 1985, the state had been producing a surplus of electricity through a process of technical and administrative efficiency that was the envy of other areas and that then "The State Electricity Board began to be looked upon as a milch cow by successive politicians, Digvijay Singh included." Power was given away and no money was set aside for repairs and maintenance. One of Singh's last proposals while in office was to write-off the electricity bills of 1.2 million people over the preceding three years. In this, he was thwarted by the Election Commission of India, which ruled the proposal to be a breach of election rules. Singh had claimed that it was desirable because the farmers of the state — who needed electricity to power water pumps — had suffered three years of drought conditions.
Work at national level
Following his party's defeat, Singh determined that he would not contest any polls for the next decade and the Raghogarh constituency was won by his cousin, Mool Singh, at the next elections in 2008. Singh shifted his attention to working for Congress from the centre, becoming a general secretary of the AICC and being involved in the party's organisation across several states, including Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. In 2012, Singh said that there was a need for younger people to be involved in state assemblies and that he had no further interest in contesting state elections. He expressed a willingness to contest the 2014 Lok Sabha elections if Congress wanted him to do so; he also said that he would like to see his son as the incumbent of the Raghogarh constituency. His son, Jaivardhan, was accompanied by his father when he joined the INC in June 2013 after previous involvement in its youth section. Mool Singh, the incumbent MLA, announced then that he would not be contesting his Raghogarh Assembly seat in the forthcoming elections, paving the way for Jaivardhan to be elected in a form of dynastic succession that is a feature of politics in India.
In January 2014, he was elected as a member of parliament to the Rajya Sabha from Madhya Pradesh.
Singh has been criticised by his opposition for corruption, which he denied. In 2011, a charge sheet was submitted in court against him but the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) determined in March 2014 that there was no case to answer.
In June 2015, Singh petitioned the Supreme Court, pleading for a CBI probe into the Vyapam scam. He claimed to have interacted with a whistleblower who had revealed sensitive information to him. The CBI dismissed the claim in November 2017, raising the possibility that Singh could be prosecuted for fabricating evidence.
In the 2019 Indian general election, he ran for Lok Sabha in the constituency of Bhopal, but lost to Pragya Singh Thakur.
In the 2024 Indian general election, he ran for Lok Sabha in the constituency of Rajgarh, and lost to BJP candidate Rodmal Nagar by a margin of 146,089 votes.
Controversies
In 1998, 19 to 24 farmers were shot dead by Madhya Pradesh police. Singh was Chief Minister of the state at the time and the People's Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) blamed him for arresting farmers' leaders.
Following the November 2008 terrorist attack in Mumbai, Singh faced widespread condemnation for launching a book which mentioned that the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh was somehow linked to the attack. Singh was also slammed for coining the terms "Saffron Terror" and "Hindu Terror".
A comment by Singh in 2011 led to disagreements within his party. He stated that the Batla House encounter case, which led to the death of two terrorists and one police officer, was fake. The Union Home Minister, P. Chidambaram, dismissed Singh's claim and his demand for a further judicial investigation into it. Congress rejected his views that the encounter was stage-managed, stating that the encounter should not be politicised or raked up for political gains. Singh's stand on the Batla House encounter led to criticism from the opposition BJP.
In 2013, Singh described Meenakshi Natarajan, a female Congress MP from Mandsaur, as "sau tunch maal" ("totally unblemished goods")—a colloquialism The Times of India described as "frequently used loosely to describe a woman as 'sexy'". Advocates for women's rights were upset by Singh's comment and called for Congress to act against him. However, the MP backed Singh and said he meant that she was like "pure gold"; The Times of India commented that "tunch maal" is "also a trade jargon among jewelers to describe the level of purity of the yellow metal" and added that Singh prefaced his comment about Natarajan by describing himself as a "political goldsmith".
Singh criticised the United States in 2011 for not respecting Osama bin Laden's religion when it buried him at sea, saying "however big a criminal one might be, his religious traditions should be respected while burying him." Congress's leadership distanced itself from his views. Singh later said that his statement should not be interpreted as support for or opposition to bin Laden, adding "I had merely said that the worst of criminals should be cremated according to their faith. He is a terrorist and he deserved the treatment that he got."
In March 2022, Digvijay Singh along with six others was sentenced for one year rigorous imprisonment by an Indore court in connection with clash with BJYM workers in 2011.
Views on Hindu nationalist groups
Singh has said that the right-wing extremism of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) represented a grave threat to national unity. He stated that "The RSS, in the garb of its nationalist ideology, is targeting Muslims the same way Nazis targeted Jews in the 1930s". Israel has protested this comment. He believes the RSS was involved in a number of terrorist strikes including the Mumbai terror attacks. He requested a CBI enquiry into the murder of Sunil Joshi, an RSS pracharak involved in the Ajmer Dargah attack, alleging that Joshi was murdered because "he knew too much".
Notes
- The grazing land was redistributed in two phases, in 1998 and 2001, and saw the proportion such land in the state fall from 7.5 per cent to 2 per cent of total area, with the difference being given to landless agricultural labourers. The value of the transferred land was ₹3,750 crore (equivalent to ₹150 billion, US$1.7 billion, €1.8 billion or £1.6 billion in 2023)
- Singh has claimed that 24,000 new schools were opened in the state during his time as Chief Minister. 26,571 habitations gained a school according to the Planning Commission.
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has generic name (help) - "Israel protests comparison of RSS with Nazis". The Times of India. 21 December 2010. Retrieved 8 August 2013.
- "RSS & 26/11: Digvijaya flags it off again, this time in Mumbai". The Indian Express. 28 December 2010. Retrieved 15 October 2022.
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Further reading
- Jaffrelot, Christophe (2003). India's Silent Revolution: The Rise of the Lower Castes in North India. C. Hurst & Co. ISBN 9781850656708.
External links
Political offices | ||
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Preceded bySunderlal Patwa | Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh 1993–2003 |
Succeeded byUma Bharati |
- 1947 births
- Living people
- Indian National Congress politicians from Madhya Pradesh
- Chief ministers of Madhya Pradesh
- India MPs 1991–1996
- Politicians from Indore
- India MPs 1984–1989
- Madhya Pradesh MLAs 1977–1980
- Madhya Pradesh MLAs 1980–1985
- Madhya Pradesh MLAs 1993–1998
- Madhya Pradesh MLAs 1998–2003
- Indian Hindus
- Lok Sabha members from Madhya Pradesh
- Chief ministers from Indian National Congress
- People from Guna district
- The Daly College Alumni