RSS leader sent me to Cong as part of strategy, says 2023 polls candidate now back with BJP

MHOW: A statement by BJP turned-Congress-turned BJP leader Ramkishore Shukla has triggered a political storm in Madhya Pradesh.
Shukla, who switched from BJP to Congress just before the 2023 assembly elections and was promptly fielded by the opposition party in the prestigious seat of Mhow, said on Wednesday that he was “sent by RSS to Congress”.
Shukla finished third, bagging 29,144 votes, and losthis deposit.BJP veteran Usha Thakur won the seat, defeating Independent candidate, ex-Congressman Antar Singh Darbar by a margin of 34,392 votes. Darbar had won the Mhow seat twice but contested as a rebel in 2023 after Congress gave the ticket to the just-in Shukla.
Both of them are now in BJP. Antar Singh Darbar switched over last month, and Shukla had his homecoming four days ago.
On Wednesday, while talking to mediapersons in Mhow, Shukla said, “I switched to Congress just be-fore the (assembly) elections, contested Mhow on a Congress ticket and lost. All this was done as part of a poll strategy and I did so under the directions of a senior RSS leader in Oct last year.”
He went on to explain: “The reason for this was the weak position of BJP candidate Usha Thakur. There was large-scale opposition from within the party. Former Congress MLA Antar Singh Darbar was fightingas an independent, and looking at all these equations, I got ready to sacrifice myself.” Shukla alleged that Darbar was also fielded by BJP as an independent candidate.
Asked who was the RSS leader who had given him the plan, he named Abhishek Udeniya, Indore Vibhag Sangathan Mantri of Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP). Videos of Shukla’s statement were soon swirling around on social media, triggering a storm.
The first reaction came from Darbar, who threat-ened to sue his fellow partyman. “This is the height of irresponsibility by a senior leader like Shukla. It is a completely false allegation that BJP fielded me. I have asked Shukla to issue a clarification and I’ll wait until tonight. If he doesn’t, I will file a defamation suit against Shukla.”
When Abhishek Udeniya of VHP was contacted for his comment in this regard, he termed Shukla’s claim to be baseless. Mhow MLA Usha Thakur declined to comment. So did Congress spokesperson KK Mishra.