New Delhi: Deputy Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh and senior Congress leader T.S. Singhdeo was defeated in his Ambikapur seat, which he won in the last three elections. He lost to the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) Rajesh Agarwal — formerly with the Congress — by just 94 votes.
Ambikapur is part of Chhattisgarh’s Surguja division, which comprises 14 assembly segments. In the 2018 assembly elections, the Congress swept the region, winning all 14 seats, ostensibly under the leadership of Singh Deo. In the 2013 elections, the Congress and the BJP had won 7 seats each.
A scion of the erstwhile royal family of Surguja, Singhdeo, often referred to as ‘Maharaja’ or ‘Baba’, holds considerable sway in the tribal-dominated region. When the Congress formed a government in 2018, Singhdeo was seen as one of the frontrunners for the CM’s chair. However, it was Bhupesh Baghel who made the cut. Singhdeo was then handed five portfolios: panchayat and rural development, health and family welfare, medical education, 20-Point Programme implementation and commercial taxes (GST). It was widely believed at the time that the Congress high command had brokered a deal between the two state leaders whereby Baghel would be CM for two-and-a-half years, with Singhdeo taking over for the rest of the term.
As the political landscape in Chhattisgarh evolves, the dynamics between leaders like Singhdeo and Baghel have significant implications for the state’s governance. The recent elections have highlighted the importance of new faces and strategies in shaping the future of Chhattisgarh politics.
Trouble started brewing between the two soon after the two-and-a-half-year threshold was breached. In 2021, Singhdeo reached out to the party high command, saying that he was being poorly treated by Baghel. While Rahul Gandhi held a closed-door meeting with the two, he was unable to douse the fire. In July 2022, Singhdeo resigned as panchayati raj minister, shooting off a four-page letter to Baghel citing delays in the allocation of funds and high-handedness by officials.
His elevation to the post of deputy CM in June this year was seen as an attempt by the Congress high command to retain its hold over the region. He is also the richest MLA in the state, with estimated assets of about Rs 500 crore.
BJP has won the Ambikapur seat only once since the formation of the state when in the 2003 assembly elections, the BJP’s Kamal Bhan Singh won against the Congress’s Madan Gopal Singh.
Also read: ‘Will not seek CM post after what I’ve experienced,’ says Chhattisgarh deputy CM TS Singhdeo