Congress announces Kamal Nath as president of party's Madhya Pradesh unit

A nine-term MP from Chhindwara, Kamal Nath, shared a post on Twitter thanking Sonia and Rahul Gandhi for bestowing trust on him. "As Madhya Pradesh Congress President, I will be committed towards working courageously in defeating BJP and non-secular forces," he wrote.

Kamal Nath and Jyotiraditya Scindia at a Congress rally earlier this year. PIC/@OfficeOfKN

New Delhi: With eyes on state polls this year, Congress Chief Rahul Gandhi on Thursday named senior party leader and former Union Minister Kamal Nath as Madhya Pradesh Congress President. Jyotiraditya Scindia who was also vying for the post was named as the chairman of the campaign committee. A nine-term MP from Chhindwara, Kamal Nath, shared a post on Twitter thanking Sonia and Rahul Gandhi for bestowing trust on him. "As Madhya Pradesh Congress President, I will be committed towards working courageously in defeating BJP and non-secular forces," he wrote.

मुझे प्रदेश अध्यक्ष के रूप में जिम्मेदारी जो सौंपी गई है उसके लिए मैं प्रतिबद्धता, साहस और आपसी तालमेल के साथ बीजेपी और गैर-धर्मनिरपेक्ष ताकतों की हार सुनिश्चित करने के लिए अपना सर्वश्रेष्ठ काम करूंगा,सोनिया गांधी जी एवं श्री राहुल गांधी जी आपके विश्वास के लिए कोटि कोटि धन्यवाद । pic.twitter.com/4Vnc2xEBOz

— Office Of Kamal Nath (@OfficeOfKN) April 26, 2018

Meanwhile, Bala Bachhan, Jitu Patwari, Ramnivas Rawat and Surender Choudhary were appointed as Working Presidents of the party. Former CM and senior party leader Digvijaya Singh had also earlier emerged as a contender for the top party post in the state after completing a gruelling 192 days, 3,325 km long Narmada Parikarma. The reshuffle is aimed at uprooting Shivraj Singh Chouhan who has been the Chief Minister since 2006. The BJP has been in power in the central Indian State since 2003. Reports say at present, there are two streams of thought within the Congress. A section of Congressmen led by AICC general secretary Deepak Babaria feels the party should avoid projecting any 'face' for the November polls. Several arguments have been marshalled such as Congress’s age-old convention to let the newly-elected MLAs chose their Chief Minister. In practice, the MLAs authorise the Congress high command to appoint its favourite. For instance, in 2000 Sonia Gandhi chose Ajit Jogi as Chief Minister of newly-created Chhattisgarh who did not have the support of even five party MLAs.