E-Paper
New Congress CM face in Chhattisgarh? Bhupesh Baghel's rival TS Singh Deo replies
Top leaders of the Congress on Wednesday discussed the party's strategy and poll preparedness in Chhattisgarh where assembly elections are due later this year.
Chhattisgarh chief minister Bhupesh Baghel's party rival TS Singh Deo has ruled out the possibility of changing the CM face ahead of the assembly elections due in November. Deo, who was among the frontrunners for the top post in the 2018 assembly election, said that the Congress party will fight on the basis of its work during the last five years.
“We are getting very positive reports from surveys and media reports. Whatever we have done, we will fight on that,” Singh Deo said.
“Whenever you are in government, you will be able to do something but also you will not be able to satisfy somebody. We will keep all those things in mind and make a strategy,” he added.
When asked about the possibility of a new chief ministerial face, the state health minister said, “There is no question of changing the CM face.”
His statement came after top leaders of the Congress discussed the party's strategy and poll preparedness in Chhattisgarh. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, former party chief Rahul Gandhi, Chhattisgarh CM Bhupesh Baghel, TS Singh Deo, besides the party's in-charge for the state Kumari Selja and general secretary, organisation, K C Venugopal were among the leaders who attended the meeting at the party headquarters in New Delhi.
During the meeting, deliberations were held on the Congress' strategy going forward.
Baghel later said on Twitter that the party was ready for assembly polls and the meeting discussed the changes in the lives of people following the 'Nava Chhattisgarh' model initiated by the Congress government in the state.
The Chhattisgarh Congress in-charge Kumari Selja stressed that the strategy of this year’s elections was to ‘uphold the constitutional values of our country and work hand in hand’; unlike the BJP’s “trap” to promote communal hate and divide politics.
“The target is to uphold the constitutional values of our country however it is evident that the BJP has been banking on nothing but its communal agenda. We can never fall into the BJP’s trap as it is short-term whereas the Congress’ ideologies and guiding forces are beyond all these which keeps the nation and society as whole above all,” Selja said.
