Jyotiraditya Scindia to be Congress CM candidate in MP?

Bhopal: Senior Congress leader Kamal Nath on Wednesday dropped enough hints to suggest that since Guna MP Jyotiraditya Scindia was most likely to be the Congress’ chief ministerial candidate in Madhya Pradesh’s 2018 Assembly polls, he would be withdrawing from the race for party leadership in the state.

“There is no opposition to Scindiaji leading the party in the coming Assembly elections. I have already said that Scindiaji should be the CM candidate,” Mr Nath told reporters at the district headquarters of Guna.

Mr Nath, along with a host of senior Congress leaders, including Mr Scindia, was in Mungaoli town of Guna to pay homage to Congress leader Mahendra Singh Kalukheda who passed away earlier this month.

Given his popularity and the fact that he has been elected nine consecutive times from Chhindawara, Mr Nath, 70, was seen as a strong contender for the chief ministerial post, along with Mr Scindia, who is 46 years old, belongs to the former royal family of Gwalior, and is a close aide of Rahul Gandhi.

However, his statement backing Mr Scindia’s candidature as the state’s potential chief minister appears to have settled the leadership issue.

“I have both political and family relations with Mr Scindia. I have absolutely no problem (declaring Mr Scindia as the Congress’ CM candidate). However, the party high command will take the final decision on the matter”, he told the media.

Mr Nath’s statement seems to have taken party leaders here by surprise.

“Neither Mr Nath nor we can decide who will lead the party in the elections. Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi will decide the matter and we all will abide by their decision,” AICC general secretary and former MP chief minister Digvijay Singh told reporters in Raipur, Chhattisgarh. He is on a two-day-visit to the neighbouring state.

MP Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) president Arun Yadav, also an aspirant for the CM candidate post, echoed Mr Singh. “Only party high command will decide who will lead the party in the polls,” he said.

There is no official word on the party’s chief ministerial candidate from either Mrs Sonia Gandhi or Mr Gandhi.

Interestingly, Mr Nath is touring MP ahead of elections, due by late 2018, and Mr Singh has already announced his six-month journey around Narmada river starting September 30. Although Mr Singh has said that his programme would be apolitical, observers say that he will mobilise public opinion for the party.

Ruling BJP here said it would make no different for the party if the Congress decides to go to polls under Mr Scindia’s leadership. “Mr Scindia was the campaign committee chairman of Congress in MP in the last Assembly elections. But the BJP won hands down by winning 163 of 234 seats in the state,” the BJP spokesman here said.