Chhattisgarh Election: Polling Countdown Begins, BJP and Congress Locked in Tough Battle
The Chhattisgarh election is scheduled to be held in two phases on November 7 and 17, with the results to be announced on December 3. In the first phase, voting will be conducted for 20 Assembly seats, while the remaining 70 constituencies will vote in the second phase, Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar said at a press conference.
Chhattisgarh has 90 Assembly constituencies. The term of the Chhattisgarh Assembly ends on January 3, 2024. The state has 2.03 crore voters.
“There will be 24,109 polling stations set up, with 4,851 in urban areas and 19,258 in rural areas,” Kumar said.
According to the Association of Democratic Reforms (ADR), the BJP has the most number of candidates with criminal backgrounds in the coming election, with 26 disclosing criminal cases. The report said that 25% of BJP contestants have criminal records. It also added that a total of 46 candidates (21%) are holding a net worth in crores.
However, Congress has the richest competitors, with 17 out of 20 candidates being crorepatis, compared to 14 (70%) out of 20 candidates from BJP, 3 (30%) out of 10 candidates analyzed from AAP, and 2 (13%) out of 15 candidates from Janta Congress Chhattisgarh (J).
Tough Competition Ahead
The state is poised to see a stiff competition between the ruling Congress Party and the main opposition BJP, with the Congress campaigned for their second term while the BJP raised allegations against the incumbent government. In 2018, the Congress had a landslide victory, gaining 68 seats, while the BJP later had to settle with 15 seats.
However, the coming election is expected to be a tough battle for the incumbent Congress, given that BJP raised allegations against Chief Minister and Congress leader Bhupesh Baghel, with the Enforcement Directorate (ED) claiming that Baghel has received illegal payments of Rs. 508 crore from the controversial firm Mahadev betting app.
The BJP has sharpened its attack against Baghel, and even pitted Prime Minister Narendra Modi against him in the battleground. Addressing a rally in Raipur, Modi demanded clarification from Baghel regarding the issue. Baghel retaliated with sharp words, condemning the BJP”s stand and accusing BJP leaders of being the real culprits in the Mahadev betting app case.
The ramifications of the incident have created resonances across the country, with opposition parties alleging that the BJP government is using probing agencies like the ED to fabricate cases against political rivals in a witch-hunt.
The BJP has also alleged that the Congress government is involved in a coal levy scam, in which coal mining companies were allegedly forced to pay a levy to the government in exchange for favorable treatment. The BJP has also alleged other scams, such as the Narva, Garua, Ghurwa, and Badi Yojana, a government scheme to revive traditional water bodies, alleging that funds under the scheme have been misused.
Moreover, the BJP is also playing the religious card, alleging that the Congress government is appeasing minorities and is anti-Hindu. The BJP has also alleged that the Congress government is not doing enough to protect Hindu temples and other religious sites.
The Congress government has denied all allegations of corruption and has accused the BJP of engaging in political witch-hunting. The government has also pointed to its achievements in the fight against corruption, such as the launch of an anti-corruption portal and the establishment of special courts to deal with corruption cases.
The Congress government has claimed that it has fulfilled most of its promises to the people, such as creating one million jobs and providing adequate support to farmers. The government has also pointed to the launch of new welfare schemes, such as the Rajiv Gandhi Kisan Nyay Yojana and the Narva, Garua, Ghurwa, and Badi Yojana.
