BJP Nominates Sitting MP Santosh Pandey From Rajnandgaon Constituency (Image: Facebook/Santosh Pandey)

Rajnandgaon Lok Sabha constituency in Chhattisgarh is expected to witness a high-voltage poll battle as BJP leader Santosh Pandey is contesting against former Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel. Rajnandgaon seat is considered a stronghold of the BJP.

In the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, Santosh Pandey contested from the Rajnandgaon constituency as the BJP candidate. He secured a total of 6,62,387 votes and defeated the Congress candidate by a huge margin of 1,11,966 votes. Congress leader Bhola Ram Sahu managed to get only 5,50,421 votes.

When the BJP released the list of candidates for 11 seats in Chhattisgarh, the party included the names of only two sitting MPs. Notably, Santosh Pandey was one of the two sitting MPs. At the same time, the Congress party is trying to secure the BJP”s stronghold by fielding a strong candidate.

In 2021, Santosh Pandey, along with former Chhattisgarh CM Raman Singh’s son, Abhishek Singh, were booked in connection with violence in Kawardha town. Police registered an FIR against Santosh Pandey under sections of rioting, promoting enmity between communities, and vandalism. Both Abhishek Singh and Santosh Pandey were present at a protest rally organised in the region that turned violent, reported the Hindustan Times in 2021. As per the report, several people sustained minor injuries in the violence.

The BJP MP recently made headlines as he received an anonymous threat call on February 22. According to a Deccan Herald report, the threat call was reportedly made from a Pakistan number. A complaint was lodged at Kawardha police station regarding this matter.