Former speaker Mahant named LoP in Chhattisgarh

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge approved a proposal to appoint Mahant as the leader of the opposition in Chhattisgarh with immediate effec

Charan Das Mahant, former speaker of Chhattisgarh assembly, will be leader of the Congress legislative party in the central Indian state after the party high command cleared his appointment on Saturday.

Charan Das Mahant was speaker in the assembly between 2018 and 2023 (Agencies)

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge approved a proposal to appoint Mahant as the leader of the opposition in Chhattisgarh with immediate effect, general secretary KC Venugopal said in a statement. Kharge also approved a proposal to continue with Deepak Baij as president of the state unit of the party.

The new Congress lawmakers in Chhattisgarh met on Wednesday and passed a resolution authorizing Kharge to decide on the next party leader in the state assembly. Mahant, former chief minister Bhupesh Baghel and former minister Umesh Patel were the top contenders for the post.

Mahant was speaker in the assembly between 2018 and 2023. He was Union minister of state for agriculture and food processing during the tenure of the United Progressive Alliance between January 2013 to May 2014. In the 2023 assembly elections, Mahant defeated Khilawan Sahu of the Bharatiya Janata Party by over 12,000 votes.

From 2004 to 2013, Mahant, on various occasions, held the post of working and full-time Congress state president, but was unable to bring his party to power in both the 2008 and 2013 assembly elections.

“As most senior leaders, including TS Singh Deo, Ravindra Choubey, Muhammad Akbar, and Jai Singh Agarwal lost elections, there was not much choice in front of the state Congress,” a Congress leader said on condition of anonymity. Notably, barring Kawasi Lakhma and Anila Bhedia, all cabinet ministers of the Baghel administration lost in the elections.

Baghel was reluctant to be the leader of the opposition, while two-time party president Mahant was eager for the post, party functionaries said. “Mahant was trying hard for the post,” a Congress MLA said, declining to be named.

Some MLAs and leaders were of the view that Baghel should be given the post because of his image as an aggressive leader in opposition. “Baghel ji was not interested in the post and he has told everyone that he doesn’t want any post in the party for some time after the assembly elections result,” said a close aide of Baghel, wishing to remain unnamed.

Mahant appointment will help the Congress in the coming times, a political commentator said. “With Baghel’s denial, Congress was left only with Mahant, as he is the senior leader and carries vast experience,” said Harsh Dubey. “Also, Congress has no tribal face other than Baij. His reappointment as (state) party president confirms it.”

“With this decision of making Charan Das Mahant the leader of the opposition and continuing with Deepak Baij as the PCC (pradesh Congress committee) president, who could not save his own seat, the party appears to have taken a decision in haste,” a Congress leader said, seeking anonymity. “Needless to say, the party could have pondered a little more, as this election’s loss was completely unexpected and required some major thinking and analysis.”

In the just- concluded assembly elections, the BJP won 54 of the 90 seats. The Congress, which had won 68 seats in 2018, was reduced to just 35 seats. The Gondwana Gantantra Party won one seat.