‘Want Kamal Nath To Be Accorded All Respect’: Ex-MP CM’s Loyalist As MLAs Arrive In Delhi Amid Rumours Of Joining BJP

Half a dozen Madhya Pradesh MLAs loyal to senior Congress leader Kamal Nath arrived in Delhi on Sunday amidst rumors that he along with his MP son Nakul Nath will join the BJP.

Kamal Nath with senior leader Digvijaya Singh and other leaders during a review meeting of party candidates after the party's loss in the State Assembly elections, in Bhopal, Dec 5, 2023

Source : PTI

Amid swirling speculations that senior Congress leader Kamal Nath, along with his MP son Nakul Nath, is poised to join the ruling BJP, around half a dozen Madhya Pradesh MLAs loyal to him arrived in Delhi on Sunday. Sources close to the veteran leader disclosed that three of these MLAs hail from Chhindwara, with another trio from the region slated to depart for Delhi, PTI reported.

Nath, a nine-time MP from Chhindwara and currently an MLA from the constituency, previously served as the chief minister before being ousted as the party's state president due to the Congress' disappointing performance in the November Assembly polls.

Some Congress officials said that Nath loyalist and former state minister Lakhan Ghangoriya was also staying with these MLAs in Delhi, as these MLAs were not returning calls.

Expressing his discontent, Deepak Saxena, a former MP minister, and staunch Nath supporter, expressed his dismay over the treatment meted out to Nath following the Assembly defeat. "We want our leader to be accorded all respect. Whatever decision he takes, we will be with him," Saxena stated.

Similarly, another Nath loyalist, former state minister Vikram Verma, displayed his allegiance by writing 'Jai Shri Ram' in his X profile and reiterated his commitment to Kamal Nath. "I will follow Kamal Nath," affirmed Verma, a former MP, during interactions with reporters on Saturday, according to PTI's report.

Kamal Nath Camp Working To Secure Backing Of 23 MLAs To Avert Anti-Defection Law: Report

As per the report, Party insiders said that the Nath camp was working to secure the backing of 23 MLAs to exempt them from the anti-defection rules. The Congress has 66 seats in the 230-member Assembly.

"In case one-third of the MLAs switch over, then anti-defection laws will not apply," said Madhya Pradesh High Court advocate Rakesh Pandey, PTI reported.

Notably, in March 2020, another senior leader, Jyotiraditya Scindia, along with numerous MLAs loyal to him, switched allegiance to the BJP, leading to the collapse of the Congress government led by Nath.