Exhibiting the fine act of balancing various factions and avoiding heartburn in any section at the same time, the Congress party on Monday evening announced its second list containing names of candidates for 45 Assembly seats taking the total number of candidates announced so far for a 90-member State Assembly, to 62.
Also, the list gave a clear indication that while the party high command was not averse to accommodating the choices of state leadership it was also not ready to succumb to the pressure of any regional ‘kshatrap’ either.
Making its team a fine melange of youth and experience, the party has put up some fighting figures like Raipur mayor Kiranmoyee Nayak and Bilaspur mayor Vani Rao against the BJP heavyweights and senior ministers Brijmohan Agrawal and Amar Agrawal. The Congress which is out of power in Chhattisgarh since Dec 2003, has also accommodated young turks like Vikas Upadhyay and Amit Jogi, son of former chief minister Ajit Jogi.
By giving chances to Amit Jogi from his father’s constituency Marwahi, the party virtually vindicated the fact that he has improved his image, at the same time it also gave a clear message to the Senior Jogi that it was not ready to succumb to pressure tactics and that as per the plan of late Nand Kumar Patel, he would have to fight Parliamentary poll if he wanted to get Assembly tickets for her better half and son. Renu Jogi, wife of Ajit Jogi, ha also been accommodated in the list. She will contest from Kota seat in Bilaspur district where in last polls she won comfortably.
As per the earlier stand, the party gave tickets to most of its sitting MlAs as well as those who lost the last poll by narrow margins. Major beneficiaries of this criterion were Bhupesh Baghel, Dhanendra Sahu, Arun Vora and Shivraj Singh Usare from Mohla Manpur seat, ticket for which was earlier given to Tej Kunwar Netam.
The list also contained names of candidates for two left seats going to polls in first phase. They are Bholaram Sahu from Khujji and Dr Thaneshwar Sahu from Dongargarh.
Though, on comparison with the ruling party list, the overall image of Congress candidates announced so far appeared better than those of their Saffron counterparts, the ruling party scored over the grand old party with having a well defined leadership in Dr Raman Singh to lead from the front, confusion over chief ministerial candidate has put Congress on back-foot even if leader of Congress legislature party Ravindra Choubey expressed the hope that the electorate will definitely consider martyrdom of party’s state leadership while exercising their right to franchise.