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Journalism of Courage
Madhya Pradesh minister Kunwar Vijay Shah has yet again left his party red-faced with a remark that, according to the Opposition, alluded to Colonel Sofiya Qureshi, one of the faces of Operation Sindoor.
Shah, an important tribal leader in the BJP ranks and a controversial figure, said at an event near Mhow on Monday that “India had taught a lesson to those responsible for the Pahalgam terror attack using their own sister (unki samaaj ki behen ke zariye)”, triggering a backlash from the Congress that alleged he referred to Col Qureshi. The minister thrice repeated his comment during the speech. He later clarified that his speech should not be seen “in a different context”, adding, “They are our sisters, and they have taken revenge with great strength along with the armed forces.”
Shah who has won eight consecutive elections from the Scheduled Tribe (ST)-reserved Harsud seat is the current minister for Tribal Affairs, Public Asset Management, and Bhopal Gas Tragedy Relief and Rehabilitation. His tendency to find himself in the middle of controversies has often overshadowed his rise from the forests of Khandwa to the upper echelons of Madhya Pradesh politics. In 2013, Shah was forced to resign from the state Cabinet over alleged sexist comments on then CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan’s wife. He was subsequently reinstated.
A BJP leader, requesting anonymity, said Shah’s considerable sway in Harsud and surrounding tribal regions had helped him “stay afloat” despite facing disciplinary action over the controversy 12 years ago. “He cannot be sidelined and holds key portfolios in the Mohan Yadav Cabinet despite many Chouhan-era ministers being dropped,” the leader said.
Shah’s importance in the BJP stems from the party’s renewed focus on tribal voters who make up around 21% of the state’s population and are estimated to influence electoral outcomes in 47 of the state’s 230 Assembly seats. The BJP won only 16 of these seats compared to the Congress’s 30 in 2018, losing power in the state. Five years later, the BJP’s tally rose to 24 as it retained power, having formed the government in 2020 following the collapse of the Kamal Nath administration.
In 2018, Shah’s apparent reference to the transgender community landed him in the soup, and four years later, he yet again left the BJP in a spot of bother with his “insulting remarks” on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s predecessors. “Seventy-five years have passed since the country gained Independence, but Modi is the first leader who is improving the lives of the poor. Before him, all prime ministers were ghoda, ghada and haathi chhaap. None of them cared for the poor,” the BJP leader said.
Later in 2022, Shah took a veiled dig at Congress MP Rahul Gandhi, saying, “He is 55-56 years old and is not married. My son is 28 years old and is already married. In a family, if your child is unmarried at 25, neighbours raise questions.” The Harsud MLA also courted controversy during his tenure as Education Minister after he mandated students to answer roll call with “Jai Hind”. In what was perceived as a veiled threat to minority institutions, Shah in July last year warned of cutting government aid to schools and madrasas that did not play the national anthem.
Shah also found himself at the receiving end of wildlife activists’ criticism in December 2024 and a probe was initiated against him after videos surfaced in which he was seen “enjoying a picnic” in the core zone of the Satpura Tiger Reserve. The video showed Shah standing atop a forest watch tower with two men cooking. “Sahi picnic toh aaj hai. Shandaar picnic hai (Today’s is the real picnic. It is a great one),” the minister was heard saying.
