Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed 14 rallies in Madhya Pradesh during campaigning for polls and reached out to young voters by reminding them of the failures of previous Congress governments on various fronts as he doubled down on development of all sections.
''The outcome of the state polls may lead to some strategy-related permutations and combinations and the markets may extrapolate it to the likely outcome in the general elections.'
The ED said Das stated that his first statement given to the agency on November 3 last year in which he cited Baghel's name was "true and correct".
With the second list, the total number of candidates declared by the Congress went up to 83 out of the total of 90.
During his visit to the Bastar district headquarters in the poll-bound state, the prime minister is scheduled to address a Bharatiya Janata Party rally.
A string of populist promises, including extension of the free ration scheme announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Mahadev betting app issue and the Hindutva card are among key factors that have catapulted the Bharatiya Janata Party to power in Chhattisgarh after five years.
The Congress alleged that the claims made by the ED against Baghel are part of a "conspiracy" hatched by the BJP to tarnish the Chhattisgarh chief minister's image and asserted that the people of the state would give a befitting reply to such tactics in the upcoming Assembly poll.
Here is a SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats) analysis of the ruling Congress in Chhattisgarh.
An audio clip of Chhattisgarh CM's son-in-law, Congress' Ajit Jogi and his son Amit, points at their involvement in "fixing" the by poll to an assembly seat last year.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday attacked the Congress, saying it skipped the meeting convened to select the new Chief Information Commissioner (CIC) as he is a Dalit and this reflected the anti-Scheduled Castes mindset of the main opposition party.
The party's decision to announce the first list of candidates so early underlines the significance it has attached to five state elections, the last round of assembly contest before the all-important Lok Sabha polls.
Out of the 25 seats, five seats each are reserved for Scheduled Tribes and Scheduled Castes.
Here is a SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats) analysis of the ruling Congress in Chhattisgarh.
'BJP leaders ask you not to learn English. We want the tribal youth to learn Chhattisgarhi, English as well as Hindi'
While asking the Centre to set up the delimitation panel, the top court, however, said it cannot direct Parliament to amend or make laws for giving proper representation to other communities that form part of the STs as that would amount to "venturing into the legislative domain".
In its complaint against Shah, the Congress told the EC that the home minister claimed in a speech in Chhattisgarh's Rajnandgaon on October 16 that "...Bhupesh Baghel's government, for appeasement politics and vote bank politics, lynched Chhattisgarh's son Bhuneshwar Sahoo and got him killed..."
The ruling Congress, voted to office in 2018 after 15 years in opposition, and the Bharatiya Janata Party are the main contenders for power in the state, where the Aam Aadmi Party, the Bahujan Samaj Party and some regional outfits are also in the fray.
State BJP chief Arun Sao confirmed the development and said the party was unable to contact Sai at present but it would make all efforts to clear any misunderstanding he has.
Voting for 10 constituencies was held from 7 am to 3 pm in 10 seats and from 8 am to 5 pm in the rest 10 segments under a thick security blanket of police and paramilitary personnel in the Naxalite-hit Bastar division.
The Bharatiya Janata Party swept Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh on Sunday inflicting a resounding defeat on the Congress to tighten its stranglehold in the Hindi heartland, in a big boost for Prime Minister Narendra Modi and setting the tone for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
There may be those who could want to go slow, citing the large pendency of follow-up action and court cases that they would have to process and/or proceed with, before raiding more politicians, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
Essel Mining & Industries Limited (EMIL), Adani Enterprises (AEL), and JSW Steel are looking to surrender their mines. Of these, AEL and EMIL have already notified the government.
Asked about the talk of a rift between him and Chief Minister Baghel during the tenure of the government in the last five years, Singhdeo said there were no differences as such.
In both of these Hindi heartland states, the straight contest between the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party and the opposition Congress.
It was one of the key promises made by the Congress ahead of the 2018 assembly polls, following which the party returned to power in the state after a gap of 15 years.
The election agent of the candidate, Brahmanand Netam, said he has submitted a reply to the Jharkhand police on the leader's behalf stating Netam is busy with electioneering.
Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel on Sunday said he was yet to receive minister T S Singh Deo's resignation from the panchayat department and that he learnt about the latter's move through media.
She also said that the founding fathers of the country would have never imagined that the Constitution and democracy will be in danger 75 years after the Independence as "bad thinking is now dominating, freedom of expression is in danger and democratic institutions are being ruined".
Though the Bills of Punjab and Rajasthan have a lot of similarities, the one approved by the Chhattisgarh Assembly is structurally different. None of the three has tried to address a key demand of the agitating farmers in full, which is to make all payments below the MSP, within and outside mandis, illegal.
'The Congress didn't win elections only on soft Hindutva.'
Rediff Labs analysed the 2013 assembly election results merged with 2014 Lok Sabha election results to develop a Sentiment Meter for the 2018 electoral battle in Chhattisgarh.
The Congress president cited a report quoting Gadkari as saying that party workers should first fulfil their domestic responsibilities as "those who cannot do that cannot manage the country".
Meanwhile, the Bharatiya Janata Party took a swipe at the Congress, with its leader Ravi Shankar Prasad saying forging a coalition was not in its DNA and it only gives importance to the Gandhi family.
Former leader of opposition in Chhattisgarh assembly Mahendra Karma sustained minor injuries after his vehicle was blown up by suspected Naxalss in Dantewada district of the state, police said.
Congress masterstroke foiled by Vajpayee niece's failure. Illustration: Uttam Ghosh/Rediff.com.
The development is being seen as a blow to the opposition Congress which was planning to forge a grand alliance in Chhattisgrah to unseat the ruling BJP.
Opposition parties claimed that his remarks were aimed at Modi, who was accused by them of making lofty promises to come to power but failing to realise them.
A total of 10 women candidates, one less than last time, have emerged victorious in Chhattisgarh Assembly polls where the saffron party is back in power for the third time.
If the Congress manages to upset its dominant rival, the BJP, in these assembly polls, then it will be a big boost to the opposition for the Lok Sabha polls, while a good show by the BJP will energise its cadres and give a fillip to its hopes of retaining the power at the Centre in 2019.
A former MP from Janjgir Lok Sabha constituency, Shukla left the Bharatiya Janata Party ahead of assembly polls in 2013 and joined the Congress next year, alleging that she was sidelined by the state BJP leadership.
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