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Kamal Nath rules out contesting Congress presidential polls; says 'don't want to shift focus from MP'

Says his complete focus is on MP which will go to polls soon

Former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath Former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath

Madhya Pradesh Congress chief Kamal Nath reiterated on Wednesday that he was not interested in running for the post of party’s national president as he did not want to shift focus from Madhya Pradesh which will go to polls in about a year.

Nath told reporters in Bhopal, “I have said many times earlier that I do not want to leave Madhya Pradesh. Only 12 months are left (for assembly polls) and if I take up any other responsibility, my attention would be diverted. As of now, my complete focus is only on Madhya Pradesh and I do not want to shift my focus.”

On the Rajasthan row, Nath said he spoke to Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot. He said Gehlot told him that he had called the Congress Legislative Party meeting. Some people engaged in indiscipline and they have been served show cause notices, Nath said, and added that the party observers have also given their report.

The senior leader, who had been summoned to Delhi by Congress interim chief Sonia Gandhi amidst the Rajasthan row, said he had earlier spoken to Rahul Gandhi about taking up the reins of the party, but he (Gandhi) refused.

On BJP's barbs regarding the Congress president polls and failure to usher in new leadership, Nath sought to know if Prime Minister Narendra Modi is allowing new leadership to flourish. “Does (former Karnataka CM B.S.) Yediyurappa fall in the new leadership category? How was (J.P) Nadda selected (as BJP national president)? Was there any election? How did he get an extension recently? Who decided this? All these facts are before the people,” Nath said.

He said the BJP is in the habit of issuing pointless statements and during the next 12 months similar frivolous statements will come with more frequency as the BJP leaders fear that they will lose power in the state.

On PFI ban

On the issue of ban on PFI and associate organisations, Nath said if there is evidence against any organisation involved in terrorist activities or having links to terror outfits, stern action should be initiated. 

“At present, terrorism is a big danger and the common people want security. But if the activities of PFI were continuing for so long, then it is your (BJP-led central government) intelligence failure. What were you doing for so many years? These activities have not started recently. When were the registrations of these organisations done? If they had terror links for long time, then what was done about it,” Nath said.

Nath also rejected the claims of Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan that the 15-month Congress government put impediments on the Mahakal project. He said all the evidence regarding the Congress government allocating budget and drawing plans for the project are available in the government records.

He alleged that the BJP was engaging in misuse of money, police and administration in the polls to 46 urban local bodies conducted recently, as they did for the civic polls in June-July this year. Nath said it is clear that the BJP resorted to such tactics out of fear of losing.

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