Bhopal: The Congress on Wednesday named veteran tribal leader Kantilal Bhuria as its official candidate for the upcoming Jhabua assembly bypoll scheduled for October 21.
Bhuria, a five-time MP, had lost to the BJP's GS Damor in the Lok Sabha elections earlier this year. But Damor, also an MLA from Jhabua assembly seat, retained his Lok Sabha seat and resigned from the assembly, which necessitated the bypoll.
The BJP is yet to announce its candidate.
Although a section of the party was opposed to Bhuria's nomination due to his loss in the Lok Sabha polls, his proximity to Congress interim chief Sonia Gandhi reportedly earned him the favour.
However, the party still needs to placate local leader and former MLA Javier Medha who remained adamant on a ticket for the bypoll. Medha is a strong loyalist of Jyotiraditya Scindia.
The Bhuria camp was also said to have been involved in Medha's defeat in the 2013 assembly bypoll. As an Independent candidate, Medha had returned the favour by defeating Bhuria son's, Vikrant, in the Assembly poll last year.
A Union minister when the UPA government was in power for two terms, Bhuria was elected to the Lok Sabha in 1998, 1999, 2004, 2009 and 2015.
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