Senior Congress leader and former Madhya Pradesh chief minister Kamal Nath's arrival in Delhi today paved way for speculation about the possibility of him joining the BJP.
As per an NDTV report, he is scheduled to meet with the leadership of the ruling party in the capital.
Nath spoke to media on Saturday afternoon when he denied to confirm the speculations, he said, "If there would be any such thing, I would inform you first."
As per PTI, when a reporter asked if he was not denying a possible switch, Nath said, "It is not about denying, you are saying this, you people are getting excited. I am not getting excited, this side or that side, but if there would be any such thing, I would inform you first."
Is Kamal Nath 'unhappy' with Congress?
According to a NDTV report, a source reportedly said, "Kamal Nath has conveyed his unhappiness to the Congress leadership."
They further added, "He feels that Rahul Gandhi is busy with the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra and the party is now being run by the likes of senior leaders Jairam Ramesh, KC Venugopal and Randeep Surjewala."
When questioned about whether Nath's dissatisfaction stemmed from not being nominated for the Rajya Sabha polls, the sources denied this claim.
They asserted that the former chief minister advocated for Ashok Singh's nomination from Madhya Pradesh and opposed the selection of senior leader Meenakshi Natarajan, who Rahul Gandhi purportedly favoured for the Upper House.
It was also mentioned that senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh has requested Nath not to leave the party.
Congress leaders react
Senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh stated in Jabalpur earlier today, "I talked to Kamal Nath at 10:30 pm last night, and he is currently in Chhindwara," when questioned about the rumors of Nath joining the BJP.
"A person who started his political journey and stood with the Nehru-Gandhi family when Indira Gandhi was sent to jail by the Janata Party, do you think such a person will ever leave Congress and the Gandhi family?" Singh added.
Madhya Pradesh Congress chief Jitu Patwari on Saturday recalled how former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi had described Kamal Nath as her "third son" as he dismissed the speculation that the party veteran may jump the ship to join the BJP.
Patwari told the media, "These talks about Kamal Nath are baseless. Indiraji had introduced Nath as her third son while addressing a public meeting (in Chhindwara) when he fought elections for the first time in 1980."
"Can anyone dream of Indiraji's third son quitting Congress?" he questioned.
Kamal Nath has collaborated with three generations of the Gandhi family and his ties with Madhya Pradesh go back to 1979-80, when former prime minister Indira Gandhi referred to him as her “third son”.
This famous description eventually led to the slogan “Indira ke do haath, Sanjay Gandhi aur Kamal Nath“.
Patwari said the friendship between Nath and Sanjay Gandhi was very famous in the 1970s.
He stated that Nath has been linked with the Nehru-Gandhi family for many years and had the trust of former prime ministers Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi, whose beliefs he endorsed. Nath also had a good rapport with former Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi.
"Just two months ago, every worker of Congress worked hard to make him chief minister," he said referring to the Madhya Pradesh assembly elections.
Nakul Nath drops Congress from social media bio
Kamal Nath's son Nakul Nath dropped Congress from his bio on social media on Saturday adding fuel to the switching rumours.
Nakul Nath reportedly denied this claim and stated that he did not have Congress in his bio before.
Nakul Nath announced himself as the candidate for the Chhindwara Lok Sabha seat earlier in February.
He announced without waiting for an official declaration by Congress.
This seat was previously won by him in 2019.
As per NDTV, Nath spoke to the public in the Chhindwara constituency when he said, "This time, too, I will be your candidate for Lok Sabha elections. Rumours are going around whether Kamal Nath or Nakul Nath would contest the election, I would like to make it clear that Kamal Nath won't contest the election, I will."
Kamal Nath has served as an MP for nine consecutive terms from Chhindwara constituency and had been visiting his bastion over the last few days.
