Bhopal, April 7 (NationPress) In a pivotal political turn, the President of the Madhya Pradesh Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Hemant Khandelwal, convened with veteran party figure and former State Home Minister Narottam Mishra on Tuesday.

Khandelwal arrived at Mishra's official residence in the Char Imli locality of Bhopal. The two political leaders engaged in a private meeting that extended for nearly thirty minutes.

The BJP characterized this gathering as a courtesy visit between two senior leaders, yet it has ignited discussions regarding the party's tactical approach for the forthcoming bypoll in the Datia Assembly constituency.

Sources within the BJP informed IANS that the primary focus of their dialogue was on electoral readiness in Datia, recognized as a longstanding bastion for Narottam Mishra.

Narottam Mishra, a five-time Minister who served from 2005 to 2023, previously held the Datia Assembly seat three times before facing defeat against Congress candidate Rajendra Bharti in the latest elections conducted in November-December 2023.

The renewed attention on Datia arises after a special court in Delhi convicted Bharti in a bank fraud case, sentencing him to three years in prison. Following this, he was disqualified from the Madhya Pradesh Assembly on April 2.

This meeting occurs shortly after the Delhi High Court issued notices regarding petitions filed by Bharti, contesting both his conviction and the three-year sentence associated with the Garmin Vikas Bank fraud case, which led to his disqualification.

Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma from the Delhi High Court denied Bharti any interim relief at this juncture, scheduling the next hearing for April 15.

The court has requested the Madhya Pradesh government's response to Bharti's challenge against his conviction and sentence imposed by the Special MP-MLA court in New Delhi on April 1.

Additionally, the court issued a notice regarding Bharti's separate petition, which seeks to halt the conviction and sentence, but it refrained from issuing any immediate orders to favor him.

The High Court also acknowledged Bharti's plea requesting directions to the Election Commission of India to delay announcing the election schedule for the Datia Assembly constituency, which became vacant following his disqualification.

Nevertheless, the court chose not to suspend the electoral process or prevent the election body from moving forward.

Bharti has approached the High Court for urgent intervention, claiming that an announcement of the election schedule would irreparably damage his political future while his appeal against his conviction is still pending.

The Special MP-MLA court in Delhi convicted Bharti in the Rural Development Bank fraud case and sentenced him to three years' imprisonment on April 1. However, the trial court granted him bail, allowing him to remain free while he seeks legal recourse.

As a result of the conviction, Bharti was disqualified as an MLA, leaving the Datia Assembly seat vacant and prompting the potential for a bypoll.