A party colleague accused Congress's Digvijaya Singh of running Madhya Pradesh by proxy

Senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh has been accused of running the Madhya Pradesh government by proxy. Not by the opposition BJP but by his own party colleague, a state minister. Umang Singhar, one of the 28 cabinet ministers in the Kamal Nath government, has gone public with his resentment at a recent letter from Digvijaya Singh, a former Chief Minister.

In the letter to ministers, Digvijaya Singh had asked about action taken on his previous letters recommending transfers and other work. He also asked for an appointment with them by August 31 to follow up on his requests.

"All I can say about honourable Digvijaya Singh is that he's running the government from behind the curtains," Umang Singhar, the Madhya Pradesh Forest Minister, said.

"Everyone, the people of Madhya Pradesh as well as Congress workers, knows he is actually running the government from behind the scenes. When he is actually running the government, there is no need for him to write letters to ministers to get work done," he lashed out.

Umang Singhar, 45, is an MLA and the nephew of former deputy Chief Minister and Leader of opposition Jamuna Devi.

Congress's Digvijaya Singh also asked for an appointment with them by August 31 to follow up on his requests

Digvijaya Singh had written in his letter in Hindi: "I had forwarded applications related to various subjects, including transfers, between January and August 15, 2019, for necessary action. I had also requested you in separate letters to inform me about the action taken on my letters and whether action was not possible in any of these cases. To know about the action taken on the above letters sent by me, I want to meet you before August 31, 2019."

The minister's outburst against Mr Singh signals more worries for the ruling Congress in Madhya Pradesh amid a tussle for the post of state Congress chief. Chief Minister Kamal Nath, who remains the party's state chief, met with party chief Sonia Gandhi last week amid threats by supporters of Jyotiraditya Scindia of quitting if he was not given the job.

Digvijaya Singh is also believed to be backing a candidate, Congress veteran Arjun Singh's son, for the top state post. The Congress, which failed in the national election to win more than one of 29 Lok Sabha seats in Madhya Pradesh just three months after a state election victory, faces growing fissures within.