A video of former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath using the word "item" seemingly for a former woman colleague who switched over to the BJP has created a furore amid campaigning for next month's assembly by-elections. Addressing a campaign 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". Nath said amid cheers from the crowd which kept shouting "Imarti Devi" as the remarks were being made. Hitting back, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan took to Twitter to say, "Imarti Devi is the daughter of a poor farmer" who rose to become a public servant after starting off as a village labourer. The Chief Minister had announced that he will sit on a silent protest from 10 am to 12 pm on October 19. Kiren Riiju, India’s minister of state for youth affairs & sports also hit back at Kamal Nath for calling Mizoram and Tripura as ‘insignificant small states’. Imarti Devi also took on Kamal Nath for the comment. A BJP delegation met Election Commission officials in Bhopal and complained against Nath for "insulting women and Dalits". Devi & 21 other MLAs loyal to Jyotiraditya Scindia had resigned from the Congress and the state Assembly and joined the BJP in March, bringing down the Kamal Nath government. Bypolls for 28 Madhya Pradesh Assembly seats will be held on November 3 and results will be declared on November 10.
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