Singh's relative isolation appears to have been brought about deliberately ``to cut him down to size'', as a senior party leader pointed out. The Congress' seniormost Chief Minister has been credited with damaging the political fortunes of many stalwarts in his state and now they are all smelling revenge.

The Chief Minister's arch-rival, former deputy chief minister Subhash Yadav, is in the forefront in settling political scores. Yadav has used the sensitive issue of the government's ``anti-farmer policies'' to embarrass the Chief Minister. Yadav has reportedly claimed that he has the backing of Kamal Nath, Madavrao Scindia and Arjun Singh in his campaign against Singh. Party sources say the silence of the party high command suggests that Singh nolonger has many supporters left in the party. The Central leaders who look after the state's affairs neither appear to be very concerned over the developments, nor are making serious efforts for a rapprochement.

``The fact that even the threat of disciplinary action has failed to deter the dissidents indicates that they have backing at the level of the party high command...the moot point is that how far will Yadav be allowed to go,'' a senior leader said.

That Singh seems to have temporarily run out of friends and supporters is clear from his old friend and senior party leader Kamal Nath's studied silence. It suggests a subtle shift in his earlier stance when he had come to the defence of Singh. This time round, the seven-time MP from Chindwara has decided to distance himself from the CM.

Sources say Kamal Nath's aloofness is an important indicator for how developments within the party's state unit would unfold.

``The anti-farmer issue appears to have been chosen with considerable thought sincethis is one issue on which no senior leader will come to the defence of the Chief Minister,'' the source pointed out.

Another state heavyweight and AICC general secretary Madhavrao Scindia, however, chose to distance himself from Yadav's claim that he had the former's backing. ``I am a general secretary and I have certain responsibilities. I am not going to go around destabilising Congress-run state governments,'' he told The Indian Express yesterday.

Scindia declined to comment on the developments in the state in which he wields considerable influence. ``It is an internal party matter and should be discussed in the party forum rather than in public,'' he said. In defence of the Chief Minister, he however argued that the faulty policies of the Central Government on the import of palm oil, sugar and subsidies were more to blame for the sufferings of the farmers in the state.

But the alacrity with which Yadav has been frequenting Delhi after the election results and lobbying hard against the CMamong the state's heavyweights, such as Arjun Singh, Motilal Vora and Kamal Nath, appears to be no mere coincidence. Yadav already has the tacit support of the Shukla brothers who have blamed Singh's administration and wrong choice of candidates for the poor Lok Sabha election results in the state.

`Yadav could be in'
The issue of including former Madhya Pradesh deputy chief minister Subhash Yadav back into the Cabinet was ``still open'', Chief Minister Digvijay Singh said in Bhopal on Wednesday.

The CM told mediapersons that he did not consider Yadav's agitation against the state government to press for various demands of farmers as an act of indiscipline but reiterated that the stir was ``less for farmers and more for political cosideration''.

PRESS TRUST OF INDIA