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Polls 2008: Chhattisgarh
Sonia leaves pollsters guessing
Vibha Sharma
Tribune News Service

Kharsiya, November 18
The Congress in Chhattisgarh has been trying to project a united front in the run-up to the assembly elections, and may have succeeded on the last day of the election campaign for phase-II.

Congress president Sonia Gandhi, who was being targeted by the ruling BJP for completely ignoring Chhattisgarh in the current Assembly elections and criticised even for being “scared of coming to Chhattisgarh fearing that the party would lose”, today chose the sleepy township of Kharsiya in Raigarh district to convey the party’s message to the electorate.

Incidentally, her son Rahul was in Korba yesterday where he addressed an impressive gathering from a platform shared by Ajit Jogi, Motilal Vora, V.C. Shukla and Charandas Mahant. While it was Rahul’s third visit to the state during the current Assembly elections, Sonia had not visited Chhattisgarh even once, leading to speculations regarding cohesiveness and election campaign strategy of the party.

For the Kharsiya rally, Sonia was also accompanied by almost all major state leaders, including Leader of the Opposition Mahendra Karma and former Chief Minister Ajit Jogi, both of whom have diametrically opposite views on the controversial Salwa Judum movement. While Karma completely favours the movement that has the support of the Raman Singh government, Jogi vehemently opposes it and would like to scrap it if the Congress comes to power.

Sonia criticised the Raman Singh government for being completely ineffective in dealing with the Naxalite problem in the state. While her 20-odd minutes speech at Kharsiya on the last day of the election campaign was largely focused on predictable issues revolving around corruption by the BJP government, misappropriation of funds released by the Centre, including NREGS, it is the choice of the venue that has interested political observers in the state.

The observers say it is an indication of the party high command being favourably inclined toward its Kharsiya candidate Nand Kumar Patel. This speculation assumes significance in the light of some latest reports that suggest that the party has a fairly good chance in the state. Besides, in political circles Patel is regarded as being close to Jogi. That the former Chief Minister has a sway over the masses cannot be doubted but his physical condition may jeopardise his claims to the top seat if the Congress comes to power.

Moreover, it was not just the electorate of five constituencies in Raigarh, by selecting Kharsia as a venue Sonia has been able to make a connect with five other adjoining constituencies, including Chandrapur in Janjgir district and Dharamjaigarh in Jashpur district.

From Jashpur district, which has around 1.25 lakh Christian voters, people had come from far-off places like Pathalgaon, Jashpur and Kunkuri. The Naxalite affected Sarguja district too has a large number of Christians.

Traditionally, the area has been a Congress stronghold but situation has changed after Dalip Singh Judev’s reconversion operation called “Ghar Vapasi” and some developments that left the Christian community aggrieved with the Congress. Sonia’s presence is expected to dilute that anger against local leaders.

As far as Kharsiya specifically is concerned, since 1952 it has been a Congress stronghold. While the population is largely mixed, the constituency also has a sizeable migrant population from Mahendragarh and Rohtak districts of Haryana. The Jindal Steel and Power Plant is located 40 km from Kharsiya toward Raigarh, which has also been the reason for large-scale migration from Haryana to the area.

Chhattisgarh
Poll-drawn Jogi misses home constituency
Vibha Sharma
Tribune News Service

Bilaspur, November 17
Former Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Ajit Jogi has held public rallies in almost 90 per cent of the constituencies in the state but has not visited Marwahi, the constituency from where he is contesting in the Assembly elections, even once.

“They (people of Marwahi) tell me there is no need for me to visit Marwahi.... They always send me back to the Assembly, and each time with a better margin,” explained a very confident Congress star campaigner on Monday morning, just before leaving for yet another day of hectic election campaigning in other parts of the state.

Jogi’s hectic schedule included a visit to Korba later in the day, where Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi addressed a rally.

Predicting a thumping majority for his party, Jogi said the USP of the Congress was its three years rule versus five years that the BJP was in power. “What we did in three years is for all to see. At present, people are tired of rampant corruption among BJP cadres. A worker at the village level who earlier owned a bicycle today owns a Balero,” he said.

Jogi, who had been projecting himself as a chief ministerial candidate in his speeches till objections were raised from within the party, said the decision regarding who would become the Chief Minister in the state would be taken after consultation with MLAs and approval from Congress president Sonia Gandhi. “We (the Congress) do not believe in diktats like the BJP,” he added.

On whether the state should be run by tribal Chief Minister, he said the state required a tribal Chief Minister because they were in majority in Chhattisgarh.

BSP a force to reckon with: Raman Singh

Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh admits that the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) is emerging as a force to reckon with in the state and this will also impact the 2008 Assembly elections.

Talking to The Tribune in Bilaspur on Monday, Raman Singh said the BSP presence could affect both ruling BJP as well as opposition Congress, but the maximum effect of this third front would be seen on the party in the opposition in the state.

Responding to Congress leader Ajit Jogi’s campaign where he (Jogi) has been openly exhorting people to take whatever the BJP is offering them to vote for it but instead vote for the Congress, he said it was a blatant violation of the election code of conduct and he would complaint to the Election Commission.

“Jogi has been Chief Minister for three years. He should know how to talk,” Raman Singh said.

Delivering election speeches in chaste Chhattisgarhi, Jogi has been asking people to take chepti (liquor), lugra (clothes) and putri(chain) incentives offered by the BJP, but vote for the Congress. Expressing complete confidence in the party coming back with a majority in the state, Raman Singh said the BJP’s position was better in the current Assembly elections than the last Vidhan Sabha elections.

He, however, completely dismissed the charges of corruption against several ministers in his government by the Congress. “Why don’t they (Congress leaders) talk of development issues instead making these meaningless allegations. There is not even an iota of truth in their charges. Let them show us one proof to prove their point,” he said, terming the Congress charge-sheet against his government as “vilaap patra”.