A day after the video of senior Congress leader Kamal Nath using the word "item" reportedly for a former woman colleague Imarti Devi, who switched over to the BJP created a furore amid campaigning for bypolls, the former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister tried to explain his remark.
Explaining his point, Nath said, "I said something, it wasn't to insult anyone," Mr. Nath said. "I just didn't remember the (person's) name... this list (in his hand) says item no.1, item no.2. Is this an insult?"
Yesterday, addressing a poll meeting in Dabra, where the Congress is up against Imarti Devi of the BJP, Nath said his party candidate was a "simple person" unlike his opponent who is an "item".
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"Why should I take the name (of the opposing candidate)? You all know that person better than me. What an item," Nath said as the crowd responded, chanting the name of Imarti Devi.
Hitting back, Devi said, "He (Nath) does not know how to speak decently. He belongs to Bengal and is not from Madhya Pradesh. What does he know about respecting a Harijan (Dalit) woman? Nath went mad after resigning as chief minister and he can say anything."
That’s not all, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan wrote to Sonia Gandhi, demanding she sacks Nath from all party posts for insulting a Dalit woman.
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"Your silence would compel me to think that you agree with Nath's statement," Chouhan said in the letter.
Bypolls for 28 Assembly seats in the state will be held on November 3.
