The BJP had lost all these 21 seats, and all the candidates defeated in the 2018 state elections have been replaced.
Eyeing a return to power in Chhattisgarh, the BJP on Thursday announced candidates for 21 constituencies, with Lok Sabha MP Vijay Baghel named from Patan constituency in Durg district, a seat held by Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel.
The BJP had lost all these 21 seats, and all the candidates defeated in the 2018 state elections have been replaced. Most new candidates are BJP’s district-level leaders or zilla panchayat members.
The Congress is yet to announce any candidate for the upcoming state elections.
Vijay Baghel, 63, won against Bhupesh Baghel in 2008 Assembly elections on a BJP ticket. In 2018, Bhupesh Baghel, Vijay’s uncle, was re-elected, this time defeating BJP’s Motilal Sahu.
Bhupesh Baghel has won from Patan five times since 1993, losing it only once to Vijay Baghel. He defeated Vijay Baghel twice — in 2003 and 2013.
A former Congressman, Vijay Baghel, has not only transitioned to the BJP but is also currently heading the party’s manifesto committee in the state.
Among key leaders, BJP named senior tribal leader Ram Vichar Netam, 62, former Rajya Sabha MP and MLA in 2008 from Ramanujganj constituency in Balrampur-Ramanujganj district, from the same seat. He lost to Congress’s Brihaspati Singh in 2013. Singh defeated BJP’s Ramkishun Singh in 2018.
The party named Mahesh Sahu as a former executive district president of the Sahu community in Raigarh. Additionally, he has served as the BJP district secretary from Kharsia, a seat that is currently held by the state Education Minister Umesh Patel. This will be Sahu’s first electoral contest.
The party named Devlal Thakur, president of the zilla panchayat in Balod district, from Dondi Lohara constituency, a seat reserved for Scheduled Tribes (ST). Congress’s Anila Bhendia, a minister in the Baghel government, had won the seat in 2018. Asharam Netam, BJP’s ST unit chief in Kanker district, could face Congress MLA Shishupal Shori, a retired IAS officer, from the reserved (ST) constituency if the ruling party nominates him again from the seat.
The party named Sarla Kosaria, a state unit vice-president and in-charge of the women’s wing in Chhattisgarh, from Saraipali, a seat reserved for Scheduled Castes (SC). The seat was bagged by Kismat Nand of Congress in 2018. In Bastar, Maniram Kashyap will be the BJP candidate — Lakeshwar Baghel of Congress won it in 2018.
The others in the BJP’s first list are Lakhanlal Dewangan (Katghora constituency in Kobra district); Shakuntala Singh Porthe (Pratappur in Surajpur district); Geeta Ghasi Sahu (Khujji); Sanjeev Saha (Mohala-Manpur, reserved, ST); Bhulan Singh Maravi (Premnagar); Laxmi Rajwade (Bhatgaon); Praboj Bhinj (Lundra-ST); Harischandra Rathia (Dharamjaigarh-ST); Alka Chandrakar (Khallari); Indrakumar Sahu (Abhanpur); Rohit Sahu (Rajim); Shrawan Markam (Sihawa-ST).
CREDIT : THE INDIAN EXPRESS
