3 min readBhopalApr 23, 2026 10:23 PM IST
First published on: Apr 23, 2026 at 10:23 PM IST
Facing mounting pressure from the BJP’s state leadership after his threatening remarks against a police officer investigating his son, who allegedly rammed into five people with his Thar vehicle, Mahdya Pradesh BJP MLA Pritam Singh Lodhi has issued a public apology and said he would abide by the party’s decision in the matter.
Lodhi, who travelled to Bhopal and met Chief Minister Mohan Yadav and BJP state president Hemant Khandelwal amid the controversy, struck a markedly conciliatory tone. “I have replied to the notice. Now the party will take a call. I will follow whatever order the party gives. The party educates you and also gives you a lesson. They taught me and also gave me tuition…that I should not make statements like this. Government officials are ours and are working for the government,” he said.
Referring to the aftermath of the April 16 crash involving his son, he said, “Why did I do that? My son was involved in an accident. I helped the local officials a lot… but they made my son walk in a procession, so I said some things. For that, I apologise.”
He concluded with an assurance: “I will not damage the party, nor will I harm any official.”
The apology comes after days of escalating statements by the MLA, including a threat to mobilise 10,000 people and fill the residence of Karera SDOP Ayush Jakhad with cow dung, and earlier remarks challenging the officer’s authority. Those comments had drawn sharp criticism, including a formal condemnation from the IPS Association of Madhya Pradesh, which termed his language “objectionable, indecent and threatening”.
The BJP subsequently went into damage-control mode, with an internal intervention by senior party leaders.
Pritam Singh Lodhi remains a politically relevant figure in the Gwalior-Chambal region, particularly in the Pichhore Assembly constituency, where caste alignments and local networks play a decisive role. Leaders like Lodhi, despite being unpredictable, command influence among segments of Other Backward Classes (OBC) voters — an important constituency for the BJP under the Mohan Yadav government.
This is not the first time Lodhi has found himself in the midst of a controversy. He has repeatedly made controversial public remarks, including threats directed at administrative and police personnel, and has faced multiple cases in the past. Each time, the party has been forced to step in to contain political damage without alienating his local support base. He was suspended from the BJP for six years for his comments against the Brahmin community, but was brought back to the party on the eve of the 2023 Assembly elections.
The current controversy was triggered by a road accident on April 16, when Lodhi’s son, Dinesh Lodhi, allegedly drove a Thar SUV into five people in Shivpuri’s Karera area, injuring three labourers on a motorcycle and two women walking along the roadside. A case was registered under Sections 281 and 125(a) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita for rash driving and endangering life, and the vehicle was seized.
Lodhi, who travelled to Bhopal and met Chief Minister Mohan Yadav and BJP state president Hemant Khandelwal amid the controversy, struck a markedly conciliatory tone. (File enhanced with AI) 
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