As Madhya Pradesh Prepares For Polls, MP Congress Sees Internal Strife Over Top Post

With assembly elections scheduled for later this year in Madhya Pradesh (MP), the Congress again finds itself a divided house, with both Kamal Nath and Jyotiraditya Scindia factions trying to assert their dominance, reported India Today.

The Congress in MP seeks to dethrone the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which has been ruling the state for 15 years. The last assembly elections saw the Congress lose 13 seats as the BJP under Shivraj Singh Chouhan strengthened its grip on power.

However, both the leaders are vying for the top post and have made separate pitches for winning strategies to the new Congress chief, Rahul Gandhi, who is expected to take a decision on the chief ministerial candidate soon.

Former Madhya Pradesh chief minister Digvijaya Singh is however not in the race this time around and had earlier pledged support to Kamal Nath for the top post. However, the local units of the party still remain factionalised.

Kamal Nath had been in the news earlier, as he was appointed the general secretary in-charge of Punjab despite his alleged role in the anti-Sikh riots in 1984, as the state was bound for polls.

As the Congress president tries to quell the infighting in the party, the BJP will try to win power in the state for the fourth time. The party will be contesting the polls under Shivraj Singh Chouhan, as announced by BJP president Amit Shah during his visit to the state in August last year.