Congress Goes All Out To Unite Kamal Nath, Digvijay

Bhopal: Amid reports of an alleged conflict over ticket distribution in Congress between Kamal Nath and Digvijay Singh for the upcoming polls, the AICC leadership held discussions with the two leaders in Delhi on Monday night.

Nath and his party colleague Singh were earlier summoned to Delhi by the AICC in the wake of reports of rebellion in at least 24 Assembly seats over distribution of tickets.

“A high level meeting of the party was held in Delhi on Monday night in connection with the Assembly polls in Madhya Pradesh. Nath and Singh were among the leaders who attended the meeting,” Congress spokesman K.K. Mishra told this newspaper on Tuesday.

Sources said AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge and senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi held discussions with Nath, Singh and AICC general secretary in-charge of poll affairs in Madhya Pradesh Randeep Surjewala on issues relating to dissatisfaction among some senior leaders in the state over ticket distribution and ‘lack of coordination’.

Rift between Nath and Singh came to the fore when the former got upset with party workers for staging a protest in front of his residence here over denial of ticket to a local leader. Nath asked workers to tear clothes of Singh since he was in-charge of ticket distribution in their region.

Singh, later, reportedly decided to stay away from campaigning for the party. The distribution of tickets has also left some other senior party leaders including Arun Yadav sulking, sources said.

In the meeting, discussion was also held on ‘lack of coordination’ among senior leaders, hurting electioneering of the party in several Assembly constituencies, sources said.

The AICC leadership has assigned the task of quelling the rebellion in the party to Nath and Singh, sources said.

Congress rebels are fighting against official candidates of the party in at least six Assembly constituencies. The party is facing rebellion by dissidents in at least 15 other Assembly seats.