Dinner diplomacy of former Chief Minister Ajit Jogi sparked fresh wave of speculation in State Congress circles even as the senior leader said that no diplomacy should be seen in the dinner which is nothing but maintaining the tradition on his part of hosting the party leaders and workers from Chhattisgarh visiting the national capital.
On the other hand party leaders, specially those belonging to the establishment faction of the state unit, waited with guarded breath to see the next move of Jogi, political dexterity of whom is not hidden from any one.
Meanwhile, reports emanating from the National Capital as well as enthusiasm and body language of party leaders back from New Delhi after
the Sunday meeting of State election committee there, dropped ample hint that central leadership was not inclined to give weightage to the former Chief Minister vis a vis the present party set up in Chhattisgarh.
Jogi’s self acceptance to the newsmen’s queries that he did not suggest any criterion for selection of candidates for the ensuing Assembly polls and that the procedure charted out by party’s national vice president Rahul Gandhi would prevail given the fact that he was neither in State election committee nor in screening committee was ample evidence that he was not happy with the goings on in the party and the dinner party thrown by him was not without any reason.
In this scenario, the biggest question dogged the political circles is whether the State Congress Unit is drifting towards divide, given the fact that Jogi would not give up so meekly to the diktats of the party high command.