Responsibility of sitting in the opposition… How did Congress’s strongest fort collapse in Chhindwara?

In 1980, Kamal Nath contested his first Lok Sabha election from Chhindwara in Madhya Pradesh. Even then it was called a Congress stronghold. Introducing him during that election, the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi had told the voters that he is my third son, please take care of him. Chhindwara has maintained the reputation of being Kamal Nath’s stronghold since then. Former Madhya Pradesh CM Kamal Nath has represented the constituency in every consecutive Lok Sabha, apart from fielding wife Alka from the seat in 1996, losing to BJP’s Sunder Lal Patwa in 1997 and handing over the legacy to his son in 2019.

Even in 2019, Chhindwara stood firmly with the Nath family

In the 2019 general election, the BJP won 28 of the state’s 29 parliamentary seats in Madhya Pradesh. However, Chhindwara remained firmly with the Congress. Nath’s son Nakul won the seat by a margin of 37,536 votes against BJP’s tribal face Nathshah Kavreti. In the 2019 by-election too, Kamal Nath won the Chhindwara assembly seat by defeating BJP’s Vivek Sahu by 24,612 votes.

Veteran Congress leader and former Madhya Pradesh chief minister Kamal Nath on Tuesday said he respects the verdict given by voters as early trends showed his son Nakul Nath trailing from traditional bastion Chhindwara. Kamal Nath, who has represented the Chhindwara Lok Sabha constituency nine times, told the media after trends showed BJP’s Vivek Bunty Sahu taking a good lead over Nakul Nath, “It is what it is, we will analyse the result whenever it comes.” The BJP, which won 28 of the 29 Lok Sabha seats in Madhya Pradesh in the 2019 election, is hoping to maintain its performance in 2024. Several exit polls had also predicted a clean sweep for the BJP in Madhya Pradesh.