Tug of war between Chhattisgarh BJP MP, minister goes to High Court

The event is being held for the first time in the country, featuring a total of 15,000 Rovers, Rangers, and Senior Scouts-Guides from across India and abroad, including 4,252 participants from Chhattisgarh.

BJP Lok Sabha MP Brijmohan Agrawal has approached the Chhattisgarh High Court, saying that his removal as the working president of the Chhattisgarh State Council for Bharat Scouts and Guides (BSG) was illegal, nearly a month after another BJP leader, state Education Minister Gajendra Yadav, was nominated as ex officio president of the council by the School Education Department.

The tug of war began on December 13, when the department issued a press note nominating minister Yadav as the ex officio president. The matter escalated when the venue for ‘First National Rover-Ranger Jamboree’ — a national event under the aegis of BSG, New Delhi, to be conducted from January 9 to 13 — was moved from New Raipur to Balod district.

Sources close to MP Agrawal said he would skip the event due to the fallout.

On January 5, Agrawal had issued a statement as the working president of the State Council for BSG, saying that the four-day event was being postponed. Some of the reasons mentioned in the statement were change of venue by the Education Department, allegedly without consent of the state council; allocation of Rs 10 crore for the event being transferred to District Education Officer (DEO), Balod, instead of to the official account of the BSG; alleged discrepancies in the tender process; and what he described as a challenge to the institutional autonomy of the BSG, which he said is governed by a rulebook and not departmental orders.

On Wednesday, Agrawal approached the High Court. As per the petition, it was alleged that Agrawal was removed from the post, along with all office bearers, without being informed.

“The president, who is duly elected, shall remain in the post for five years. Removing office bearers elected through a constitutional process in this manner sets a dangerous precedent, and doing so without the knowledge of the current chairman and other office bearers is insulting,” the petition said.

Agrawal’s counsel, Kishor Bhaduri, said, “The petition filed on January 7 states that the action of the state is alleged to be illegal one.”

Education Minister Yadav did not respond to phone calls and messages sent by The Indian Express seeking his comment on the MP’s petition.

In 2023, Agrawal, a nine-time MLA, was made the Education Minister, but after becoming an MP in 2024, he vacated his seat and the minister’s post.

With the tussle between Agrawal and Yadav becoming public, the Congress has targeted the BJP and raised allegations of corruption in the tender process.

Subodh Haridwal, state general secretary of the Congress, said, “There is confusion in the government over the Jamboree event, and there is infighting between two groups.”

Responding to the Congress, Yadav dismissed claims of infighting. “Because having different groups works in the Congress family, they think the BJP is like them. Tell them to first handle their internal issues and then talk about us.”

Also dismissing the corruption allegations, Yadav said, “The work is done as per the Government e-Marketplace (GeM) portal. The allegation is baseless, and they are just maligning Chhattisgarh’s image.”