Poornima Joshi The Congress may opt for the experience and organisational skills of the old guard against the competing claims of the younger lot in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh, where it has just won the Assembly elections.

The party needs to consolidate and strengthen its organisational structure in the States in the run-up to the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.

Hence, said sources, in Madhya Pradesh, nine-term MP from Chhaindwara Kamal Nath is the frontrunner for the CM post, while the other aspirant, Jyotiraditya Scindia, may have to wait his turn.

In Rajasthan, Sachin Pilot’s ambition for the top job is likely to be assuaged with the offer of the Deputy CM’s post, while Ashok Gehlot is the clear favourite to occupy the CM’s post.

In Chhattisgarh, the party high command may contain the aggressive State unit president Bhupesh Baghel and favour the more seasoned TS Singh Deo, who was Opposition leader in the Assembly for the last five years.

High drama in Bhopal

The Congress staked claim to form the government in M.P. late on Tuesday night with all the CM contenders — Kamal Nath, Scindia and Digvijaya Singh — jointly meeting Governor Anandiben Patel and claiming the support of 121 MLAs in the 230-member Assembly.

On Wednesday afternoon, incumbent Shivraj Singh Chouhan gracefully bowed out, tendering his resignation, saying: “We have not got a majority in the State so we will not stake claim to form the government.”

The Congress now has 114 MLAs in the Assembly. Four rebel leaders who had contested as Independents have promised support. Additionally, the SP, with one MLA, and the BSP, with two MLAs, have also extended support to the Congress, validating the party’s official claim before the Governor.

The Congress Legislature Party met in Bhopal on Wednesday afternoon and passed a one-line resolution, authorising party President Rahul Gandhi to take the final decision on the CM post.

Sources said that in all likelihood it would be Kamal Nath, whose formidable organisational skills and resourcefulness helped the Congress win in a State where it had no party structure left following 15 years of BJP rule.

It’s cooler in Rajasthan

In Rajasthan, with its 99 seats, the Congress has just about managed to get to the majority mark with its pre-poll ally Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD), which has won one seat, taking the tally to 100 seats in the 199-seat Assembly. While the party is comfortably placed to form the government — with the BSP extending support through its six MLAs — the Congress has its task cut out in augmenting the party structure and poll machinery before the Lok Sabha polls.

Despite the raging anti-incumbency and farm distress, the BJP managed to give a tough fight to the Congress in Rajasthan, and the Grand old Party needs an experienced hand such as Gehlot at the helm in the election year. Sources said Pilot, who has worked tirelessly in the State, may be rewarded with the Deputy CM post.

Smooth sail in Chhattisgarh

In Chhattisgarh, where the Congress won a staggering 68 seats in the 90-member Assembly, there is a problem of plenty. Pradesh Congress President Bhupesh Bhagel, sitting MP and MLA-elect from Durg Rural, Tamradhwaj Sahu, and the scion of the erstwhile Sarguja state, Singh Deo, are among the contenders.

Even as the Congress convened a meeting of its legislature party late on Wednesday, sources said the balance is heavily tilted in favour of Singh Deo, who quietly channelled resources and campaigned throughout the State.

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