MP elections: Brother vs brother to uncle vs nephew, seats where Congress-BJP contest is intra-family feud

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poll-bound Madhya Pradesh, this has penetrated right up to the constituency-level in a few seats. The Congress verses the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) contest has turned into an electoral battle between brothers, uncles and nephews, and in-laws in a handful of Assembly segments. Here's a look at five seats where the Congress-BJP contest is shaped around family faultlines.

Girija Shankar Sharma and Sitasaran Sharma are brothers, who are credited for making Hoshangabad a BJP bastion over the last three decades. Between the two brothers, the constituency has been won seven consecutive times from 1990 to 2018. An enmity erupted between the brothers around six years ago.

Girija, who had won the seat (formerly known as Itarsi) in 2003 and 2008, wanted the BJP to nominate him as the candidate in the 2018 elections. The party, however, issued the ticket to Sitasaran, the sitting MLA who had won the seat in 1990, 1993, 1998 and 2013. Exciting news! Mint is now on WhatsApp Channels. Subscribe today by clicking the link and stay updated with the latest financial insights! Click here! This prompted Girija, 73, to briefly leave the party in 2018.

He returned soon after as he was promised a “respectful role". In the run-up to the upcoming election, Girija again staked claim for the seat, but the BJP backed Sitasaran, 69, for the seat. A disgruntled Girija left the BJP and joined Congress in September, along with his loyalists and supporters.