In what will be perceived as a major blow to the Congress in Chhattisgarh ahead of next month's elections, its executive president in the state joined the BJP in Bilaspur on Saturday.
Ramdayal Uike, a four-time MLA, joined the BJP in the presence of saffron party chief Amit Shah and Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh. On Friday, Shah had exhorted booth-level workers of the BJP to work to create a “wave” in favour of the BJP that would lead to a “tsunami” that would bring Prime Minister Narendra Modi back to power.
Shah demanded that the BJP target winning 65 of the 90 assembly seats in the polls, which will be held in two phases on November 12 and 20. The BJP, which has been in power in Chhattisgarh since 2003, currently holds 49 seats in the assembly.
Chhattisgarh Congress chief Bhupesh Baghel took to Twitter to react to Uike joining the BJP. Baghel wrote in Hindi, “The Congress had given much respect to Uike. Uike leaving the party is the politics of opportunism. But this time, he has not recognised the opportunity correctly.”
Uike's departure to the BJP is the second major blow to the Congress in Chhattisgarh after Mayawati declared she would tie up with the outfit of former chief minister Ajit Jogi, who left the Congress in 2016.