Controversy Over Kamal Nath's Video On "Muslim Votes"

Congress leader Kamal Nath says his party will be doomed if Muslims don't vote for it en masse, in a video that is in circulation weeks before the Madhya Pradesh election. The video is proof of the Congress's communal campaign, the ruling BJP said today.

NDTV cannot vouch for the authenticity of the controversial video in which Kamal Nath appears to be addressing party men and urging them to ensure Muslim votes.

"My request to you is that you analyse past records... How much voting in Muslim booths, and if there was 50-60 per cent voting, then why 60 per cent - why not 90 per cent? This post-mortem is very important," says the nine-time Lok Sabha parliamentarian. There is applause.

"If we don't get 90 per cent votes of the Muslims, then we are doomed. You are talking about 80 (per cent). I am talking about 90... You know where there are Muslim votes, how much voting took place there? If there was less than 60 per cent voting, then why? It must have been a big reason," says Kamal Nath.

The BJP's Amit Malviya tweeted the video and called it the "communal truth of the Congress's politics".

Congress spokesperson Shobha Oza responded: "It seems the BJP has just lost the plot. What's wrong in the video? He is just appealing for votes. They don't want to answer the questions that people are asking. Different communities are meeting him, he is just telling them to vote. They are just showing some edited portions without any context."

A BJP delegation comprising Minority Affairs Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, party lawmakers SS Ahluwalia, Meenakshi Lekhi and Anil Baluni also submitted their complaint to the Election Commission on Wednesday. 

The Congress, out of power in Madhya Pradesh since 2003, sees a good chance of ousting the BJP in the November 28 election, after its 15 years in power. The BJP, however, believes it can swing a fourth term despite anti-incumbency, mainly because of the infighting and factionalism in the Congress.