The campaigning for Lok Sabha elections has picked up in Madhya Pradesh ahead of the first round of the polls in the central Indian state on April 29.
An intense fight between the Congress and BJP is on the cards with the former eyeing to improve its Lok Sabha tally from the state even as the arch-rival hopes to make amends for its reverses in the state polls late last year.
Both Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath, who is seeking a mandate from the Chhindwara Assembly constituency in a bypoll, and his son Nakul Nath, a Boston University graduate, who is facing his maiden electoral test, filed their nominations to enter the poll fray.
Interestingly, Nakul is much richer as compared to his 72-year-old industrialist father as proved by the affidavits submitted to the returning officer at the Chhindwara district collectorate on Tuesday. Both arrived together to submit the papers for two different polls.
Nakul is contesting the Lok Sabha polls from Chhindwara constituency from where his father has won several times over four decades. The 44-year-old is also the richest candidate among those in the fray for six other parliamentary constituencies that will go to polls on April 29.
Nakul’s income for the 2017-18 is double as compared to his father’s income.
As per the affidavit, Kamal Nath has stated that he has filed an income tax return for an annual income of Rs 1.38 crore in 2017-18. Though his income has increased by more than four times in the last five years since 2013-14, but even then his annual income is not a match to his son Nakul’s annual income.
Going by his affidavit, Nakul maintained that he has filed an I-T return for an annual income of Rs 2.76 crore in 2017-18.
The total value of Kamal Nath’s movable assets is Rs 7.01 crore while that of his son, Rs 615 crore. However, total value of the veteran leader’s immovable assets is Rs 68.36 crore, whereas the his eldest son Nakul possesses assets of only Rs 41.77 crore.
However, there are no pending cases against the father and son.
The chief minister is currently the Lok Sabha member from Chhindwara. He will be contesting in the Chhindwara Assembly bypoll as he needs to get elected to the Madhya Pradesh Assembly within six months of being sworn in to continue as the CM. The Assembly seat was vacated by siting Congress MLA Deepak Saxena for him.
Kamal Nath, his wife Alka, and Nakul have been campaigning across the length and breadth of Chhindwara Lok Sabha seat to ensure their hold on it does not loosen.
“I even don’t know the BJP candidate. What is his name?” Kamal Nath asked the gathering while addressing an election meeting at Dussehra Maidan in Chhindwara on Tuesday.
When some Congress leaders replied, “Nathan Shah”. The CM laughingly added, “I know there is Amit Shah (president) of BJP. Any relation to him?” The BJP has pitted Vivek Sahu (Bunty), a fresh face, against Kamal Nath for the Assembly by-election and Nathan Shah, a tribal leader and former MLA, against his son.
Six parliamentary constituencies of the state - Shahdol, Sidhi, Jabalpur, Mandala, Balaghat and Chhindwara - will go to poll on April 29 in the fourth round of the seven-phased Lok Sabha polls and Tuesday was the last day to file nominations.