"He is a heera (diamond). His mind is like a
computer. Not only will he take his father's name further, he will shine
brighter," says Ganesh Anand Jatav, a farmer from Kolaras, as he waits to
hear Jyotiraditya. Outside the tent, a bunch of men play dhols to
welcome the man they call Maharaj.
This is his first stop in a list of eight locations that he has to cover
in the day and he is running late. In the morning a group of journalists
had waited for him at Bombay Kothi, and like his father, he gives them
interviews while traveling from one meeting to another. His SUV stopping
at the roadside, to offload one set of journalists and allowing the next
lot to get in -- giving them 15 to 20 minutes each.
"I have a direct relationship with you," he tells the people at Karai.
"That is what brought my father, the mukhiya (head) of my family
to politics. I am not here for politics, I am here for development."
"The blessings that you have bestowed on me is like a volcano in my heart.
I am proud to say that there is no central government scheme that I have
not brought to Guna. The mantle of progress that I have taken upon me, I
will not rest till I have fulfilled it and in turn fulfilled the dream of
my father."
What have you done for Guna, its youth?
The concept of development and progress in Guna is not on a segment-wise
basis. It is a holistic blueprint. What is very important is to first
ensure that you have set the foundation right -- education, health,
infrastructure, bijli, sadak, paani (electricity, roads, water).
My time has been spent making sure that that foundation is strong. I have
brought Rs 2,000 crores (Rs 2 billion), which is roughly about
$400 million worth, of development projects to my constituency in a period
of five years. That is my goal. Every central government scheme today is
in Guna-Shivpuri. I don't think this is the case in any other constituency
in the state.
It will soon be almost 10 years since you first became MP, what has
been your single biggest pride in this time?
What you see before you (the highway we traveled on in Shivpuri),
it is my creation. My development, my work, my progress. This is a
highway, but I am saying this only metaphorically. I have built a bypass
in Guna, built water projects, power projects. It is my greatest pleasure.
That is why I am doing what I am doing.
My passion is not politics, it is development.
Image: The Scindia scion takes a break.
Also read: In Khajuraho, CM could carry day for BJP | India Votes
Advertisement
