Kamal Nath keeps cards close to his chest, Congress works the phones to keep flock intact

While sources close to Nath said Congress was putting pressure on him not to switch to the BJP, the sense in the Congress’s central leadership is that the BJP is also in a dilemma over the induction of Nath, given the allegations against him in connection with the anti-Sikh riots of 1984.

Sources in the Congress said Nath is keen to leave, but could end up sending only his son – Lok Sabha MP Nakul Nath – to the BJP. The worry, according to the sources, is about the MLAs close to him.

Kamal Nath had landed in New Delhi on Saturday after cancelling a five-day tour of his family bastion in Chhindwara. This came after BJP’s Madhya Pradesh president V D Sharma said Nath was welcome to join the party.

Congress insiders said Nath is in New Delhi with his close confidants and at least a dozen MLAs as they chart their future course of action. While at least three of these MLAs are from Chhindwara, others from the region are waiting for Nath to break his silence as they contemplate their next move.

On Sunday, Nath headed out of his official residence in New Delhi and told reporters that he was going out to attend a tehrvi ceremony. “If there is such a thing, I will inform you first,” he had said regarding the buzz around a switch.

Sajjan Singh Verma, a loyalist of Nath, met him in Delhi on Sunday and dismissed talks about his possible exit from the Congress as speculation. “I spoke to him. Kamal Nath ji was sitting with a chart. How will tickets be distributed in Lok Sabha, the caste compositions – he said his entire focus was on that,” Verma told reporters in Delhi.

Verma also said that Nath did not “have any such thoughts” nor discussions. “I said the media is saying you did not even deny. He said this was a question made by the media, and they should only answer. Till the time the person being talked about doesn’t say a word, how can anyone accept this?” Verma said, adding that they also discussed the Congress’s ongoing Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra that will soon enter Madhya Pradesh.

Former chief minister and Congress leader Digvijaya Singh, also expressed confidence that Nath would remain in the party. “The pressure of ED, I-T and CBI, which is on everybody, is also on him. But Kamal Nath’s character is not that of someone who gives into pressure,” Singh said.

Madhya Pradesh Congress president Jitu Patwari said he had also spoken to Nath. “He told me… ‘I was, am and will be a Congressman’… In democracy, there is victory and defeat. In every situation, he has lived his life firmly with the ideals of the Congress, and will continue to live with the ideals of the Congress till his last breath,” Patwari said.

However, even amid the display of confidence, Congress leaders have been contacting Nath loyalists, employing a wide range of tactics to convince them to stay. A delegation of Congress leaders have been dispatched from Bhopal to Chhindwara to make contact with Nath’s loyalists.

A senior leader who is part of the negotiations said, “We have managed to convince at least one or two of Nath’s loyalists to not leave the party. We have told loyalists close to Nath that they are not ready to fight by-elections and don’t have the numbers to escape the anti-defection law. Some of the leaders now have doubts in their minds about their future course of action.”

Another Congress leader said, “There are many tactics that we are employing. We have also promised these leaders (Nath’s loyalists) better positions in the party. We promised one MLA that we would make him the official Lok Sabha candidate from Chhindwara. We are trying our best to ensure the worst case scenario doesn’t play out.”

Currently, there are six MLAs from Chhindwara district who are close supporters of Kamal Nath. There are at least nine other MLAs considered close to Nath from other regions, including Jabalpur and Gwalior. There are also Nath loyalists who occupy district president and other posts in the party organisation, as well as the five mayors chosen in 2022.

“If any of these mayors switch, we can get wiped out in urban bodies. The official version is that Kamal Nath is holding a chart which contains the caste combinations and other strategies for the Lok Sabha elections. Have the other MLAs also turned up to read the chart all the way in Delhi? All we can do is ensure we get to as many MLAs as possible. We are focusing on leaders who are outside Mahakaushal regions as well,” a senior Congress leader said.