Day after Congress declares candidate, Madhya Pradesh government accepts Deputy Collector’s resignation

Ms. Bangre had recently taken out a foot march from Amla to Bhopal in order to get her resignation accepted

Former deputy collector Nisha Bangre is arrested on October 11, 2023 after she reached Bhopal on a march demanding her resignation accepted. | Photo Credit: The Hindu

A day after the Congress declared its candidate for Madhya Pradesh’s Amla seat for the upcoming Assembly polls, the State Government on October 24 accepted the resignation of Deputy Collector Nisha Bangre, who was earlier expected to enter the poll fray from Amla on a Congress ticket.

In an order dated October 23, the General Administration Department, M.P. Government, also ended the departmental proceedings against Ms. Bangre, 32, that had been started after she allegedly defied a government order denying her permission to attend an all-religion prayer for the inauguration of her new home in Amla of Betel district.

The moves comes after the Madhya Pradesh High Court, hearing a plea by Ms. Bangre on the delay in accepting her resignation, on Friday had directed the government to decide on Ms. Bangre’s resignation and conclude the proceedings against her by Monday.

The Congress had already declared its candidates on 229 of 230 Assembly seats in the State while holding the announcement on Amla seat. Party sources had confirmed that the party wanted to field Ms. Bangre from the seat and was waiting for decision on her resignation. However, the Congress late on Monday fielded party leader Manoj Malve.

M.P. Congress media in-charge K.K. Mishra said, “The party waited for the government to accept her resignation but the BJP played it very cunningly. They had accepted her resignation on Monday itself but released the order dated October 23 on Tuesday after the Congress declared its candidate.”

“Was the government waiting for Amla to be declared the Congress candidate? When Nisha Bangre had not even declared from which party she would contest the elections, then why was the government so afraid of her?,” he said.

A source in the Congress, however, said that the party is likely to change the candidate on Amla seat.

Ms. Bangre, who belongs to a Scheduled Caste (SC) and posted as Deputy Collector in Chhatarpur district, has been up in the arms against the BJP government in the State since June, when the government denied her permission to attend the all-religion prayer. Ms. Bangre resigned hours before the inauguration function and took part in it.

She had approached the High Court on August 7 after her resignation was not accepted by the government after which the HC directed the government to soon decide on the matter. Later on August 21, the government initiated disciplinary proceedings against her and used it to get a stay on the directions.

Earlier in September, Ms. Bangre had also began a foot march from her home district Betul to Bhopal demanding that her resignation be accepted. On October 9 as the march reached Bhopal, she was arrested after her supporters decided to march to Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan’s residence. She was released on bail the next day.

Ms. Bangre had also approached the Supreme Court recently seeking its intervention in the matter. The SC, saying that the matter was pending before the High Court, had rejected her plea but hoped for an expedited decision on the matter.