Chhattisgarh: BJP's strong foothold in regions makes it uphill task for Congress

Raipur: The ruling BJP in Chhattisgarh has fared exceedingly well against the Congress in all four parliamentary elections held after the state’s formation in 2000, and is expected to improve its tally of 2019, when it won 9 of the 11 seats in the state.

Issues pertaining to farmers, tribals, mining, infrastructure and employment, apart from the ‘Modi factor’ are likely to play a role in the poll outcome in the state, which is divided into northern, central and southern regions on the basis of topography.

Tribals comprise 32 per cent of Chhattisgarh's population, and around 70 per cent people of the state are involved in agriculture and allied activities.

The BJP has declared candidates for all 11 seats.

Brijmohan Agrawal, currently minister in the Vishnu Deo Sai-led state government, and two sitting MPs are among the BJP candidates.

The Congress has so far announced candidates in six seats, pinning hopes on senior leaders, including former chief minister Bhupesh Baghel.

The BJP won 10 out of the 11 Lok Sabha seats in 2004, 2009 and 2014. Despite a severe loss in the 2018 state assembly elections, it bagged 9 seats in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.

North Chhattisgarh

This tribal-dominated region comprises Surguja, Raigarh (both reserved for Scheduled Tribe candidates) and Korba Lok Sabha seats, each covering eight assembly segments.

The region has dense forests, hills, water reservoirs and is home to some indigenous tribal communities. People are dependent largely on agriculture and non-timber forest produce for livelihood.

The region, also having many coal mines, shares border with Odisha, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh.

Human-elephant conflicts and protests by coal mine projects-affected people have been key issues in the region.

Another factor is the influence of the erstwhile royal families of Surguja and Jashpur.

The BJP won all the eight assembly seats under Surguja Lok Sabha constituency in the last polls.

In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, BJP’s Renuka Singh won this seat and became minister at the Centre. She later successfully contested the 2023 state assembly polls.

This time, the BJP has fielded former MLA Chintamani Maharaj from Surguja. He had quit the Congress before the last assembly polls.

Raigarh is the home turf of CM Sai, who represented this parliamentary seat in 1999, 2004, 2009 and 2014. In 2019, BJP’s Gomti Sai won this seat. She was elected to the Chhattisgarh assembly last year.

The BJP has this time fielded Radheshyam Rathiya, a fresh face.

The saffron party has not lost these two Lok Sabha seats since the formation of Chhattisgarh.

Korba seat is currently held by Congress’ Jyotsana Mahant, who has been re-nominated by the party. The BJP has fielded its influential woman leader Saroj Pandey in this seat.

Central Chhattisgarh

It comprises six Lok Sabha seats – Raipur, Durg, Rajnandgaon, Mahasamund, Bilaspur, and Janjgir-Champa.

This region shares borders with Odisha, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra.

Due to a large number of rice varieties grown in the state's central plains, it is also known as the ‘paddy bowl’.

Raipur, Durg and Bhilai areas account for almost half of the total urban population of the state.

Farmer-related issues and employment play a dominant role in determining the poll outcome in this region.

During the previous assembly polls, the BJP also campaigned on the Hindutva issue here.

Janjgir-Champa Lok Sabha seat (reserved for Scheduled Caste candidates) has eight assembly segments, all won by the Congress in the last assembly polls. The party also won five of the eight assembly segments under Rajnandgaon.

The Congress has fielded former CM Baghel in Rajnandgaon against BJP’s sitting MP Santosh Pandey.

Former minister Shivkumar Dahariya is the Congress nominee in Janjgir-Champa against BJP’s Kamlesh Jangde, a fresh face.

The BJP, which won eight out of nine assembly segments in Raipur Lok Sabha constituency in the last state polls, has fielded eight-term MLA Brijmohan Agrawal from Raipur against former MLA Vikas Upadhay of Congress.

Southern Chhattisgarh

It comprises Bastar and Kanker Lok Sabha seats, both reserved for ST and covering eight assembly segments each.

The region, bordered by Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Odisha, is known for rich forests, diverse tribal population and unique culture.

Majority of the people here are dependent on traditional agriculture and forests for livelihood.

The entire Bastar constituency and some parts of Kanker have been struggling with the Left Wing Extremism. Naxalism, religious conversion, mining and welfare schemes for tribals are among the key issues in the two seats.

Bastar constituency is currently held by state Congress chief Dipak Baij. The party has not yet announced its candidate from the seat. The BJP has fielded Mahesh Kashyap, who has been raising the issue of alleged religious conversion in the region.

Kanker parliamentary seat is currently held by BJP’s Mohan Mandavi. The party has replaced him with former MLA Bhojraj Nag, who had been at the forefront of protests against alleged religious conversion in the region. The BJP has never lost this seat since the formation of the state.

The Congress is yet to announce its candidate for the seat.