In a recent development, Kamal Nath, the ex-chief minister of Madhya Pradesh and a prominent leader within the Congress party, officially assumed his role as a member of the Madhya Pradesh legislative assembly on Monday. This significant event was accompanied by the swearing-in ceremony of the newly elected Congress MLA, Sohanlal Valmiki, who also took the oath of office on the same day.
The state assembly polls were held in November 2023. Congress veteran Kamal Nath, who won the election from Chhindwara assembly seat, was not in Madhya Pradesh capital Bhopal when the newly elected MLAs were administered the oath during a special session of the state assembly here last month. On Monday, speaker Narendra Singh Tomar administered the oath of office and secrecy to Nath and Valmiki in the meeting hall of the state assembly.
Kamal Nath secured victory over his BJP counterpart Banti Sahu by a substantial margin of 36,594 votes in the Chhindwara assembly constituency. Additionally, Congress MLA Sohanlal Valmiki emerged triumphant in the Parasia seat of Chhindwara district, defeating BJP candidate Jyoti Dehariya by a margin of 2,168 votes.
This electoral success comes amidst a significant political transition for Kamal Nath, who was replaced as the state Congress president following the party's disappointing performance in the 2023 state assembly polls. In those elections, the ruling BJP achieved a resounding victory, claiming 163 seats out of the 230-member Madhya Pradesh assembly. In contrast, the Congress, which had secured 114 seats in 2018, experienced a decline, winning only 66 segments this time. Furthermore, the Bharat Adivasi Party secured one seat in the assembly.