The United State of Madhya Pradesh: Decoding politics behind the statements

Two leaders, one aim: The Congress, for once, may be putting forward a united front in the state

Rajya Sabha Member of Parliament and former chief minister (CM) Digvijaya Singh recently said that the Congress will fight elections in Madhya Pradesh (MP) under the leadership of Kamal Nath and that he would be the CM face. This is the first time Digvijaya has named Nath as the party’s chief ministerial candidate in the 2023 state elections.

Until recently, the leaders of the party were issuing contradictory statements on this subject. Former Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) chief Arun Yadav and former minister Jitu Patwari both said, in separate statements, that members of the Congress Legislative Party would decide on its leader after winning the polls. Yadav also said that Nath was MP Congress Committee (MPCC) president and the party was contesting elections under his leadership.

Patwari, too, has opened a front. His statement that one person cannot remain in a particular post for more than five years has kicked up dust. He said that after completing five years, he would put in his papers. Nath completes five years as MPCC president on May 1 this year. This is being seen as a direct criticism of Nath. Dismissing the controversy as baseless, Spokesperson for Congress Anand Jat says the party is united under the leadership of Nath.

“These are all fabricated issues under the influence of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Even if other party leaders are ambitious, what’s wrong in it? If the same thing happens in the BJP, it is said that there are two-three power centres. In the case of Congress, it is termed factionalism,” he says.

Ek Nath, Kamal Nath

“Last year, a decision was made at an informal meeting held at the PCC office in Bhopal to project Nath as the CM face — the decision is expected to be approved by High Command within a month,” says a close aide of Nath.

“Nath is the most popular Congress leader in the state. He has created a system in the past five years. He is cobbling together resources. In such a situation, there is no room for any doubt regarding his candidature,” he adds.

Says Rakesh Dixit, a senior journalist and political analyst, “Nath is the supreme leader of the Congress in MP. The only other leader who comes close to him in seniority and popularity is 

former CM Digvijaya. But he has already extended his support to him.”

‘Diggy Raja’, real and present danger to BJP

The BJP considers Digvijaya a threat. That is the reason the BJP becomes aggressive as soon as Digvijaya appears at the forefront. The party starts recalling his controversial statements, factionalism in Congress, and failures of the regime.

It is worth mentioning that before the 2018 Assembly polls, Digvijaya had done the Narmada Parikrama, a yatra across MP. Its effect showed up in the election results. With his journey in the Narmada river belt, he revived flagging interest in the Congress. Digvijaya has a strong connection with workers in the rural belt of MP.

Juggernaut rolls on

“Nath takes all the important decisions. He enjoys the full support of the Gandhi parivar. The party’s main agenda is to get back to power. I think as the state inches closer to the elections, all dissenting voices will automatically fall in line as soon as Delhi gives a signal,” says Dixit.

A few months before the Assembly elections, the Nath-Digvijaya duo is all set to work its magic, says another Congress leader considered close to Digvijaya.

“While Nath will chalk out the overall strategy, Digvijaya has already started touring different constituencies to identify their issues. Digvijaya held talks with workers on the lost seats in Bhopal recently. He is trying to unite the workers in such seats where the party has been losing ground for the past two-three elections. There are approximately 60 such seats and the party is drawing up a separate strategy for these seats,” says a leader.

According to Congress insiders, Digvijaya is looking to kill many birds with one stone. He is meeting booth-level workers, dissuading angry workers and trying to win them back for the party and its election campaign. He is also boosting the morale of such workers who are facing lawsuits due to political reasons. He will prepare a survey report after these tours and submit it to the party.

As far as the BJP is concerned, in December 2022, almost a year before the scheduled Assembly polls, CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan started holding one-to-one meetings with party Members of Legislative Assembly (MLAs). This started after an internal survey found that the performance of about 40 per cent MLAs was unsatisfactory.

The BJP may hold back from giving tickets to most of Jyotiraditya Scindia’s supporters in the upcoming Assembly elections. The tickets will be given to those leaders who have a chance at winning.