Ready to oblige if you want to bid me farewell: Kamal Nath tells Congress workers
Chhindwara (PTI): A day after dismissing the buzz about his BJP switch, Congress veteran Kamal Nath on Wednesday told the party workers that he would not "impose" himself on them and would "leave" if they want him to.
Addressing a meeting of the party workers at Harrai on his home turf Chhindwara, the 77-year-old leader said he had been receiving their love and trust for many years.
"If you want to bid farewell to Kamal Nath, it's your choice. I am ready to leave. I don't want to impose myself. This is a matter of your choice," the former MP chief minister told the gathering.
Nath's son Nakul Nath is a Lok Sabha member from the Chhindwara Lok Sabha constituency.
The senior Nath had already announced that Nakul will contest again from this seat.
The veteran politician, who represents the Chhindwara assembly seat, said the BJP projects itself aggressively but Congress workers should not panic.
"We have to vote for securing the future and I have trust in all of you," he said.
Nath said the Lord Ram temple in Ayodhya belongs to all, suggesting that the BJP should not take credit for its construction.
"Does the BJP own the Ram temple? It belongs to all, including me. The temple is constructed with public money. The Supreme Court gave a verdict and since they (BJP) are in power, they constructed the temple," he said.
Nath also said he worshipped Lord Ram and constructed a big temple dedicated to Lord Hanuman on the land owned by him in Chhindwara.
"We are religious people and keep our culture intact," he said.
Amid speculations that he might join the BJP, the veteran politician on Tuesday dismissed them as a "media creation".
"You (media) are making such speculations and nobody else is saying so. Have you ever heard from me? You run the news and ask me. You should refute this news," Nath told reporters on Tuesday.
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Cong takes swipe at PM over India not being part of US-led 'Pax Silica' grouping
New Delh (PTI) The Congress on Saturday said it is perhaps not very surprising that India is not part of a US-led strategic initiative to build a secure silicon supply chain, given the "sharp downturn" in the Trump-Modi ties, and asserted that it would have been to "our advantage if we had been part of this group".
Congress general secretary in charge of communications Jairam Ramesh took a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying the news of India not being part of the group comes after the PM had enthusiastically posted on social media about a telephone call with his "once-upon-a-time good friend and a recipient of many hugs in Ahmedabad, Houston, and Washington DC".
In a lengthy post on X, Ramesh said, "According to some news reports, the US has excluded India from a nine-nation initiative it has launched to reduce Chinese control on high-tech supply chains. The agreement is called Pax Silica, clearly as a counter to Pax Sinica. The nations included (for the moment at least) are the US, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Singapore, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Australia."
"Given the sharp downturn in the Trump-Modi ties since May 10th, 2025, it is perhaps not very surprising that India has not been included. Undoubtedly, it would have been to our advantage if we had been part of this group."
"This news comes a day after the PM had enthusiastically posted on his telephone call with his once-upon-a-time good friend and a recipient of many hugs in Ahmedabad, Houston, and Washington DC," the Congress leader asserted.
The new US-led strategic initiative, rooted in deep cooperation with trusted allies, has been launched to build a secure and innovation-driven silicon supply chain.
According to the US State Department, the initiative called 'Pax Silica' aims to reduce coercive dependencies, protect the materials and capabilities foundational to artificial intelligence (AI), and ensure aligned nations can develop and deploy transformative technologies at scale.
The initiative includes Japan, South Korea, Singapore, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Australia. With the exception of India, all other QUAD countries -- Japan, Australia and the US -- are part of the new initiative.
New Delhi will host the India-AI Impact Summit 2026 on February 19-20, focusing on the principles of 'People, Planet, and Progress'. The summit, announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the France AI Action Summit, will be the first-ever global AI summit hosted in the Global South.
Prime Minister Modi and US President Trump on Thursday discussed ways to sustain momentum in the bilateral economic partnership in a phone conversation amid signs of the two sides inching closer to firming up a much-awaited trade deal.
The phone call between the two leaders came on a day Indian and American negotiators concluded two-day talks on the proposed bilateral trade agreement that is expected to provide relief to India from the Trump administration's whopping 50 per cent tariffs on Indian goods.
In a social media post, Modi had described the conversation as "warm and engaging".
"We reviewed the progress in our bilateral relations and discussed regional and international developments. India and the US will continue to work together for global peace, stability and prosperity," Modi had said without making any reference to trade ties.
