Congress wins Marwahi assembly bypoll in Chhattisgarh by huge margin

The victory in the Marwahi bypoll took the Congress’ strength to 70 in the 90-member Chhattisgarh assembly.

Published on: Nov 11, 2020, 10:40:04 IST

Hindustan Times, Raipur | By Ritesh Mishra

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The ruling Congress won the Marwahi assembly bypoll by a huge margin of 38,197 votes on Tuesday.

Dr Krishna Kumar Dhruw of the Congress who won the Marwahi assembly bypoll in Chattisgarh. (HT PHOTO)

The seat, reserved for Scheduled Tribes (ST) candidates, falls in the newly formed Gaurela-Pendra-Marwahi district and the bypoll was necessitated after Janata Congress Chhattisgarh (J) MLA and former chief minister Ajit Jogi died in May this year.

Congress candidate Dr Krishna Kumar Dhruw won the seat defeating his nearest rival BJP’s Dr Gambhir Singh by 38,197 votes.

Dhruw secured 83,561 votes while Singh got 45,364 votes in the bypoll which was held on November 3.

Chief minister Bhupesh Baghel congratulated Dr Dhruw for his victory and claimed that the victory is of the people of Marwahi.

“Marwahi’s by-election was not merely an election to elect an MLA, but was a test of public response against the deceit of the last 18 years,” Baghel said.

The Marwahi constituency was the bastion of Jogi for the last two decades but this is the first time in the last 20 years Jogis were not in fray in Marwahi. On October 19, Ajit Jogi’s son and JCC candidate Amit Jogi’s nomination was rejected by the collector on the basis of a high-power committee’s report which found that Amit was not a tribal. The nomination papers of Jogi’s wife Richa Jogi, who had filed nomination for the same seat, were also cancelled by the district collector on the same ground

Ten days before the polling, Janata Congress Chhattisgarh (Jogi) had extended support to the BJP candidate alleging that the ruling Congress had insulted Ajit Jogi. The JCC has four MLAs in the 90-member Chhattisgarh assembly.

Later, two of the JCC MLA extended their support to Congress in a press conference in Marwahi.

Chief minister Baghel led the Congress campaign and visited the constituency four times in the last one month while the BJP’s national vice president and former chief minister Raman Singh led his party’s campaign.

The Congress highlighted several pro-farmer and pro-tribal initiatives of the state government including the Rajiv Gandhi Kisan Nyay Yojna, cow dung procurement scheme, distribution of forest rights certificates, and relief measures to combat the Covid-19 pandemic.

The BJP in its campaign accused the Congress government of failing on all fronts and alleged that the law and order situation in the state has deteriorated.

Meanwhile, JCC chief Amit Jogi claimed that the Congress won because the Congress government did not let a Jogi family candidate fight in this election. “The victory is the death of democracy,” Amit said in a statement.

With this victory, Congress the tally of Congress in the 90-member state assembly has gone up to 70 MLAs.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Ritesh Mishra
Ritesh Mishra is the State Correspondent for Chhattisgarh with Hindustan Times. He reports on Maoism, internal security, politics, mining, governance, and major developments shaping the state. Based in Raipur, he has covered Chhattisgarh since 2016, reporting extensively from the Bastar region and other conflict-affected areas. With nearly two decades of experience in journalism, Ritesh has built a reputation for ground reporting from some of India's most challenging terrains. His coverage spans Left-Wing Extremism, counter-insurgency operations, elections, tribal affairs, environmental issues, infrastructure, mining, and socio-economic developments. He has reported on major security operations, policy initiatives, wildlife crime, and the changing dynamics of conflict and development in Central India. Before moving to Chhattisgarh, Ritesh spent eight years reporting from Madhya Pradesh, covering politics, administration, crime, development, and social issues. Throughout his career, he has reported on various forms of extremism in Central India, combining field reporting with in-depth analysis to produce accurate, balanced, and impactful journalism. Prior to joining Hindustan Times, Ritesh worked with The Pioneer and The Free Press Journal, where he covered a wide range of beats and honed his skills in political, investigative, and field reporting. His reporting is marked by exclusive stories, extensive fieldwork, and a commitment to factual, on-the-ground journalism that brings complex issues to a wider audience.Read More

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