LS polls In Chhattisgarh BJP drops 4 sitting MPs fields Cong turncoat Chintamani Maharaj

Raipur, Mar 2 (PTI) The BJP on Saturday announced candidates for all 11 Lok Sabha seats in Chhattisgarh, dropping four sitting MPs and introducing an incumbent state minister into the mix.
    The list showcases three women leaders, including a former MP and a former MLA among them.
    Of the total 11 candidates, three are from Other Backward Classes, four are tribals, and one belongs to the Scheduled Caste community.
    The BJP has denied tickets to sitting MPs in Raipur, Mahasamund, Kanker and Janjgir seats, but has renominated Vijay Baghel and Santosh Pandey from Durg and Rajnandgaon constituencies, respectively.
    The finalised candidates include Brijmohan Agrawal (Raipur seat), Santosh Pandey (Rajnandgaon), Vijay Baghel (Durg), Chintamani Maharaj (Surguja), Radheshyam Rathiya (Raigarh), Tokhan Sahu (Bilaspur), Mahesh Kashyap (Bastar), Bhojraj Nag (Kanker), and three women candidates - Saroj Pandey (Korba), Kamlesh Jangde (Janjgir), and Rupkumari Choudhary (Mahasamund).
    Agrawal, a longstanding eight-time MLA and a prominent figure within the party, currently serves as a minister in the Vishnu Deo Sai government. His unparalleled winning streak in assembly elections since 1990 and past ministerial roles underscore his political acumen.
    While the BJP has maintained continuity by retaining sitting MPs, Vijay Baghel (Durg) and Santosh Pandey (Rajnandgaon), their backgrounds and influence within the party differ significantly.
    Baghel, a respected Kurmi community leader, unsuccessfully contested in the previous year's assembly elections against the then Chief Minister of the ruling Congress, Bhupesh Baghel, showcasing his resilience in the political arena.
    Meanwhile, Pandey, with roots in the RSS, boasts a substantial foothold in the party's state organisation.
    The BJP's strategic deployment of candidates extends to the inclusion of Chintamani Maharaj, who defected from the Congress before the last assembly polls, now contesting from the Surguja parliamentary seat.
    Maharaj, a two-term former MLA, is the son of prominent social worker late Sant Rameshwar Gahira Guru who had considerable influence in north Chhattisgarh, particularly among tribals, for his works.
    With an eye on diversity, the BJP has nominated candidates from various backgrounds and regions, emphasising inclusivity in its electoral strategy for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections in Chhattisgarh.
    Like Vijay Baghel, three more BJP MPs, namely Arun Sao (Bilaspur), Renuka Singh (Surguja) and Gomti Sai (Raigarh), were fielded in last year's assembly polls and won in their respective constituencies.
    Sao was appointed as Deputy Chief Minister in the state after BJP came to power.

    Raigarh seat's nominee Radheshaym Rathiya is a fresh face. He had represented panchayat bodies in the past.

    BJP's prominent woman leader Saroj Pandey, whose term as Rajya Sabha member expired recently, has been fielded from Korba. Pandey had earlier served as a Lok Sabha member from Durg and as an MLA.

    Former MLAs Rupkumari Chaudhary and Bhojraj Nag have been fielded from Mahasamund and Kanker seats, respectively.

    Kamlesh Jangde (Janjgir seat) and Mahesh Kashyap (Bastar) are also fresh faces.
    Of the eleven constituencies in the state, four - Surguja, Bastar, Raigarh and Kanker are reserved for Scheduled Tribe (ST) candidates and Janjgir-Champa for Scheduled Caste (SC) category.

    In the 2019 general elections, BJP had won 9 out of 11 seats in the state.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)