Madhya Pradesh election 2023: Can BJP's Bunty Sahu upset Kamal Nath's Chhindwara dominance?

It is a classic David versus Goliath battle in Chhindwara. Kamal Nath had been the MP from Chhindwara for nearly 40 years before he won the Chhindwara Assembly seat in a by-poll in 2019 to become the chief minister. The young man he defeated then, Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) Bunty Sahu, is trying to do what many say is impossible.

“Kamal Nath is in the heart of the people here and will continue to remain so. He has developed Chhindwara and dedicated his entire life to the people here, it is a model district,” Kamal Nath’s son and current Chhindwara MP Nakul Nath told News18. He said he was sure that all seven Assembly seats in Chhindwara district would be swept by the Congress like in 2018 and Kamal Nath would win and be sworn in as the CM soon after.

“I will give you the venue and time on December 3 of Kamal Nath’s swearing-in as CM,” a confident Nakul Nath told News18.

The 108-foot tall Hanuman statue in Chhindwara built by Kamal Nath is said to shower god’s blessings on the Nath family, say locals. Chhindwara has its airport built by Nath for charter flights, including his own, to land and a helipad exists right next to his palatial house here; the roads are smooth and wide.

But a top BJP leader told News18 that the party has set the goal to win five out of seven seats in Chhindwara this time, and Bunty Sahu could give a tough fight to Nath. Sahu polled 44% votes and fell short by only 25,000 votes against Nath in 2019 – when the latter was already CM and Sahu was fighting his first election.

“Sahu has solidified his position since. He will reduce the victory margin of Nath further this time,” a local journalist here said.

Top BJP leaders like Amit Shah and other ministers are also campaigning here.

News18 met Sahu during campaigning in a small village in Chhindwara last week. “This time Chhindwara will create history. For 43 years, people have faced lies and loot. Kamal Nath today is a man worth crores but see the condition of Chhindwara. He has never gone to any village or ward in Chhindwara, ask the people,” Sahu said.

He pointed out how Kamal Nath has spent most of the last week in Chhindwara, campaigning here. “He should be doing rallies across the state as he is the CM face of the Congress, but he is doing small sabhas here of 100-150 people in villages,” Sahu told News18. He said there was no development in Chhindwara villages and no jobs though Nath owns 22 companies.

“Now Chhindwara’s beta, Bunty Sahu, will serve people,” he said.

MP Nakul Nath has also been under fire from the BJP after Kamal Nath earlier said Nakul would decide the tickets for the seven seats of Chhindwara. CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan has described Kamal Nath as Dhritarashtra for caring only about the future of his son.

“Why don’t they talk about the real issues – unemployment, inflation and development? They have nothing to talk about, so they are making personal remarks,” Nakul Nath told News18. He said the atmosphere in MP was in favour of the Congress and people trusted Congress’ 11 guarantees.

Locals in Chhindwara swear by Kamal Nath and many say they will vote for him, especially because he is set to be CM if the Congress wins. “But Kamal Nath should do something about unemployment. He should do something for the youngsters,” they say.

News18 saw Kamal Nath meet local workers last week to motivate them and hand them over pamphlets for distribution in villages. Chhindwara is a battleground between the BJP and the Congress this time and a matter of sheer prestige for Kamal Nath.