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HomePoliticsCM Baghel hands out plum posts to Chhattisgarh MLAs amid rebellion in...

CM Baghel hands out plum posts to Chhattisgarh MLAs amid rebellion in Rajasthan Congress

Chhattisgarh CM Bhupesh Baghel has appointed nearly 50 Congress MLAs in government. BJP says he’s keeping horses in the stable, Congress says normal process.

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Raipur: Looking to avoid any challenge to his government from the BJP in the wake of the events in Madhya Pradesh and now Rajasthan, Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel has moved to consolidate his position in Chhattisgarh with the appointment of nearly 50 Congress MLAs.

Over the last week, he has appointed 19 MLAs in the government — including 15 as parliamentary secretaries. This comes after he named over 30 other MLAs and many non-MLAs in the last few months as chairmen or vice-chairmen of state boards, commissions and corporations, among others.

Baghel’s move seeks to quell any possible rebellion in the ranks after the Kamal Nath government was toppled in Madhya Pradesh and an open rebellion is brewing in Rajasthan against CM Ashok Gehlot. All three Congress governments were formed in December 2018.

The Congress spokesperson called these appointments “part of normal process” even as some party leaders said on condition of anonymity that this is a bid to strike a balance amid internal rivalry among senior leaders — Health Minister T.S. Singh Dev, Legislative Assembly Speaker Charandas Mahant, Motilal Vora, Home Minister Tamradhwaj Sahu, and the CM himself.

However, BJP leaders said Baghel is moving “to ensure that all the horses remain inside the stables”, highlighting that the practice of appointing parliamentary secretaries was opposed by the current law minister before the government came to power.

Currently the Congress has 69 members in the 90-member assembly while BJP has 14. Besides, Ajit Jogi’s Chhattisgarh Janata Congress has four MLAs and there are three independent MLAs.


Also read: Elections have become meaningless in India — the BJP wins even when it loses


No threat to govt but ‘fear is quite natural’: Congress

Congress spokesperson Dhananjay Singh Thakur said all governments make such moves after coming to power. “Leaders who toiled hard for the party and have won the election deserve the right to be a stakeholder in power structure. It should not be viewed from any sort of political prism,” he said.

Responding to the comments by BJP leaders, he said they are having a hard time adjusting in the opposition’s role after 15 years in power, so are talking in this “nonsensical manner”. “The Bhupesh Baghel government is performing quite strongly and there is absolutely no threat to it. It is getting full support from all the Congress leaders of the state,” he said.

However, Congress leaders said privately that the CM has made a good effort to calm the growing discontent in the party and among the MLAs. They admitted that such appointments are unusual, especially in times of the Covid-19 pandemic, but the CM was compelled to keep the MLAs satisfied.

A party leader who was hopeful about getting one of these appointments said this move is an attempt “to strike balance” amid growing discontent among the legislators, and the factional feud in the organisation.

He said the Chhattisgarh government isn’t getting affected much by instances of dissatisfaction, “but the way things unfolded in Madhya Pradesh, and then Rajasthan, and now speculations is also rising in Maharashtra, the fear is quite natural”.

“From the manner of appointments, it is quite clear that apart from MLAs, people close to important leaders have also been adjusted,” he said, referring to Dev, Mahant, Vora, and Sahu. “It is known to everyone that all these big leaders are considered as opponents of Bhupesh Baghel and were trying to bag the chief minister’s post in 2018 too,” he said.

A second Congress leader said these appointments have also been made in view of the impending byelection in the Raigarh assembly segment — which was vacated after the death of former CM Ajit Jogi — so that all the factions within the party unite to fight the elections.

For Baghel, who has constantly been on odds with Jogi, it is also a fight to maintain personal credibility, said the second leader.

Rajesh Bissa, former media in-charge and spokesperson of Chhattisgarh Congress said, “The chief minister has honoured all the leaders who toiled hard for the party. According to my analysis, all the leaders, be it MLAs or other names, have either won in the 2018 assembly elections or they have significantly contributed towards the party’s victory.”


Also read: Gehlot govt sends police SOG team to Manesar to collect voice samples of Pilot camp MLAs


‘Thanks to Sachin Pilot…’  

BJP MLA and former minister Ajay Chandrakar took a jibe at the government in a tweet and said, “Thanks to Mr. Sachin Pilot. The Chhattisgarh government is appointing parliamentary secretaries in a jiffy to ensure that all the horses remain inside the stables. This is despite the fact that the current Law Minister had approached the court against the same practice.”

A case against the appointment of 11 MLAs as parliamentary secretaries in 2017 by the Raman Singh-led BJP government is still pending in the Supreme Court. The Chhattisgarh High Court had dismissed the petition filed by current Law Minister Mohammad Akbar along with another RTI activist. However, the Supreme Court accepted the plea against the HC verdict.

In another tweet, Chandrakar demanded that the Baghel government must clarify its position about these appointments in the view of the court’s orders.

Former BJP minister Rajesh Munat said the way the state government distributed plum political appointments among its MLAs in the last one week “presents a classic example of unfolding the umbrella in Chhattisgarh while it’s raining in Rajasthan only”.

“The manner in which Bhupesh Baghel has been running the government for the last 18 months has caused immense dissatisfaction among the ruling party MLAs. These 50 appointments are an attempt to somehow quell this discontent only,” he said.

In view of the “extraordinary circumstances” arising out of the Covid epidemic period and the austerity measures announced by the CM before, Munat said, “Now the question is whether these appointments will increase the funds or they will help in curtailing the expenses? The government should clarify all this.”


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