The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party has decided to field its Ministers from their respective Assembly seats barring Agriculture Minister Chandrashekhar Sahu ‘Champu’ and Revenue Minister Dayaldas Baghel who have been virtually left in lurch thanks to barrage of protests engulfing their home turfs.
Meanwhile, after hours of brain-teasing exercise on identifying prospective candidates from Friday afternoon onwards, Chief Minister Dr Raman Singh accompanied by BJP National general secretary and Chhattisgarh In-charge JP Nadda and National joint secretary Saudan Singh left for New Delhi on Saturday to attend the meeting of BJP Central Election Committee scheduled on Sunday.
Talking to media persons ahead of his departure to the National Capital, Dr Singh informed that in the meeting of State election committee single name panel for about 35 seats have been finalised. Final approval to these names will be given in the meeting of Central Election Committee to be held on Sunday, ahead of which the State poll panel members will try to thrash out differences on other seats as well, as names of candidates on most of the seats are likely to be declared on Monday, Dr Singh added.
According to Dr Raman Singh, the party has decided to field all its Ministers from their respective Assembly constituencies except Agriculture Minister Chandrashekhar Sahu and Revenue Minister Dayaldas Baghel who are facing stiff protests of party workers on their home grounds. Seeing the protests one extra name has been added to the panels of the two Ministers. Besides, no Minister or sitting MlA would be allowed to change his/her constituency, Dr Singh added.
In the panels of certain seats, whose MlAs are considered as weak, additional names have been added and final names on these seats will be decided in CEC meet. Constituencies where the panel has more than one names include Bharatpur (Sonhat), Manendragarh, Jashpur, Kunkuri, Takhatpur, Beltara, Janjgir-Champa, Balauda Bazaar, Bindranavagarh, Sanjari Balod, Dondilohara, Kawardha, Dongargaon, Kanker, Keshkal, Jagdalpur and Chitrakot from where new faces are likely to get the chance.