The Congress will win at least 12-13 seats [of the total 29] in Madhya Pradesh in the forthcoming Lok Sabha election, former Chief Minister and party veteran Kamal Nath said in Ujjain on March 5.
Mr. Nath was in the city to attend Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra, which is currently passing through the State.
“Look, I believe the Congress should win at least 12-13 seats. I have spoken at many places. The BJP is an expert in creating a fake atmosphere [of claiming to win all 29 seats],” Mr. Nath said, speaking to reporters.
Mr. Nath’s son, Mr. Nakul Nath, is Congress’s only Lok Sabha MP from the State as the BJP had won 28 out of the 29 seats in 2019.
Mr. Nath also said names of about 15-20 candidates from the State are expected to be announced after the party’s Central Election Committee meeting scheduled for Wednesday.
Refutes rumours
Mr. Nath also refuted the rumours that were rife last month about him quitting the Congress and joining the BJP, and reiterated that they were “cooked up by the media”.
“Did you ever hear anything from my mouth? You guys [the media] only ran news on them, and everybody started asking me questions. I had already said that the journalists should refute them first,” he said.
The State’s political scene was on a boil in February following reports that Mr. Nath was in touch with the BJP as he was upset with the party ever since he had been removed as the State Congress president in the wake of the party’s loss in the November Assembly election.
The buzz was only put to rest by his loyalist after a meeting with him in Delhi, and later by his son Nakul Nath who, at an event in Chhindwara, said he and his father were not going to leave the Congress.
Mr. Nath also said that he will not be contesting the Lok Sabha poll. “Nakul will only fight them,” he said. Mr. Nakul has already declared himself as the Congress candidate from his family bastion of Chhindwara.
