Archive · 7 Aug 2026
BJP Reviews Datia By-Election Defeat Ahead of 2028 MP Polls
A political party called the BJP lost a special election in a place called Datia in Madhya Pradesh, India.
The party leaders expected to win easily, by more than 7,000 votes, but they lost instead.
The party had decided to try a new person, Ashutosh Tiwari, instead of an experienced leader named Narottam Mishra.
Mishra was not happy because he wanted to be the candidate again.
His supporters were also upset, and the party had a hard time motivating them to work for the new candidate.
Mishra told voters that he was treated unfairly by the party.
After losing, the top party leaders wanted to find out what went wrong.
They decided to review their election plans for the next big state election in 2028.
The party also changed its whole local team in Datia.
Losing this election taught the BJP a lesson, and they want to do better next time.
The BJP's central leadership is reviewing its defeat in the Datia Assembly by-election in Madhya Pradesh to avoid a repeat in the 2028 state polls.
The party leadership had expected a victory by a margin of at least 7,000 votes.
The BJP fielded new face Ashutosh Tiwari instead of renominating senior leader and former home minister Narottam Mishra.
Mishra's supporters were left simmering, and Mishra portrayed himself as a 'victim of injustice' during the campaign.
Following the defeat, the state BJP dissolved the entire party structure in the Datia constituency.
- Who
- The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) central and state leadership, including B L Santoshi, Narottam Mishra, and candidate Ashutosh Tiwari.
- What
- The BJP suffered an unexpected defeat in the Datia Assembly by-election and is now reviewing its poll strategy.
- When
- The by-election was just concluded; the review was reported on a Thursday.
- Where
- Datia Assembly constituency in Madhya Pradesh, India.
- Why
- The party fielded a fresh face over an old guard, leading to internal discord and exposing shortcomings in its election strategy.
BJP Leadership
Narottam Mishra's Camp
Ticket Denial
BJP Leadership
The party chose a new face, Ashutosh Tiwari, over Narottam Mishra as part of its experiment to promote next-generation leaders in BJP-ruled states ahead of the 2028 Assembly polls.
Narottam Mishra's Camp
Mishra claimed he was denied the ticket by someone in a higher position, not because Ashutosh was more capable, and he portrayed himself as a 'victim of injustice'.
Cause of the Defeat
BJP Leadership
The defeat exposed shortcomings in the party's poll strategy, and the leadership will review and plug the loopholes before fielding new faces in 2028.
Narottam Mishra's Camp
The adverse situation was created by Narottam Mishra's supporters, who were left simmering after his renomination was denied and had to be motivated to work for the party candidate.
- Constituency
- Datia Assembly constituency, Madhya Pradesh
- BJP Candidate
- Ashutosh Tiwari
- Old Guard Denied Ticket
- Narottam Mishra, former home minister
- Expected Victory Margin
- At least 7,000 votes
- Defeat Margin Reduction vs 2023
- Around 1,700 votes
- Review Officer
- B L Santoshi, BJP national general secretary (organization)
- Next State Polls
- 2028 Madhya Pradesh Assembly elections
- Post-Defeat Action
- Dissolution of entire BJP party structure in the constituency