Bhopal, September 16: Putting an end to speculation on the chief ministerial face of the Congress in Madhya Pradesh for the upcoming Assembly elections, Congress general secretary in-charge of state, Randeep Surjewala on Saturday said the state unit party head Kamal Nath will be the chief minister if the Congress is voted to power.

Surjewala, who joined as the Congress' election in-charge a few weeks ago, said this while responding to a question during a press conference here. Pointing towards Kamal Nath who was seated beside him, Surjewala responded: "Don't you see he is sitting here? Do you have any doubts about him?" Madhya Pradesh Assembly Elections 2023: Upcoming Polls a Battle Between ‘Dharma’ and ‘Adharma’, Not Votes, Says Smriti Irani.

Notably, when Kamal Nath's supporters put up banners projecting him as 'future chief minister' on January 1, some of the Congress leaders had then expressed their disappointment, saying the decision on CM's face would be decided by the elected MLAs. Madhya Pradesh Assembly Elections 2023: After BJP’s ‘Jan Ashirvad Yatra’ Congress To Take Out ‘Jan Aakrosh Yatra’ in MP.

However, when asked whether Kamal Nath would contest the Assembly election, Surjewala said: "Decision on this would be taken by the party's central election committee." Kamal Nath, as the state party chief, did not contest the 2018 assembly polls but was sworn in as the CM after the Congress returned to power in the state.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 16, 2023 11:34 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).