Some opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders in Chhattisgarh have expressed displeasure over being left out of a three-day Chintan Shivir (brainstorming session) of the party that began on Tuesday in Bastar and said they would take up the matter with the central leadership.
“I do not know why my party has not invited me to this Shivir... I believe the party is listening to only a handful of BJP leaders of the state... I will definitely talk to the senior leaders over this apathy towards me and some other senior leaders,” said a former lawmaker, who did not want to be named.
The three-day meeting is being held to finalise the BJP’s strategy for the 2023 assembly polls.
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Another BJP leader said the party has made a “big mistake” by excluding them. “By not inviting some of the regional leaders and former lawmakers, the party is creating a divide which will damage the party,” said the second leader, requesting anonymity. He too said he will talk to the central leadership.
BJP’s Chhattisgarh in-charge D Purandeswari, Union minister Renuka Singh, and former chief minister Raman Singh are among those attending the conclave.
{{/usCountry}}BJP’s Chhattisgarh in-charge D Purandeswari, Union minister Renuka Singh, and former chief minister Raman Singh are among those attending the conclave.
{{/usCountry}}The BJP ruled Chhattisgarh for 15 years before it lost power to Congress in 2018. It is holding such an event for the first time in tribal-dominated Bastar. The BJP won just one of the 12 assembly seats in the region. Eleven of the 12 seats in Bastar are reserved for the tribals, who account for the state’s 32% population. The Congress wrested the lone seat BJP won in the region in a by-poll that was necessitated after lawmaker Bhima Mandavi was killed in a Maoist attack in 2019.
Congress leader RP Singh said the BJP has no respect for senior leaders and the state’s people. “...14 MLAs (members of legislative assembly) of the BJP (in Chhattisgarh) are divided into four camps and everyone knows about it. Their infighting is clearly visible. The BJP is unable to handle the infighting...”
BJP leader Sacchinand Upasane said every leader is important for his party. “There is a criterion for invitation for the Shivir. Hence, those who met this criterion were called. We work as a unit...the Congress has no right to comment as its faces infighting...” said Upasane, referring to the tussle for the chief ministerial post in the state.