Political shake-up in Chhattisgarh: Raipur City South By-Election

Raipur | Correspondent: Chhattisgarh is set to witness its Legislative Assembly by-election for the Raipur City South Constituency.

This constituency has long been recognized as a stronghold of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), with prominent leader Brijmohan Agrawal representing it since 1990.

The eight-time legislator has remained undefeated in every election since.

The Raipur South seat became vacant after BJP MLA Brijmohan Agrawal was elected as a Member of Parliament (MP) for the Raipur Lok Sabha constituency.

Agrawal secured a landslide victory over his closest rival, Congress’s Vikas Upadhyay, by a record margin of over 5.75 lakh votes.

Voting for the Raipur City South Assembly seat will take place on November 13, with the counting of votes scheduled for November 23.

The BJP has nominated former MP Sunil Soni as its candidate for the by-election, while the Congress has fielded Akash Sharma, the current State President of the Youth Congress.

From Mayor to Member of Parliament (MP)

Sunil Soni, born on November 28, 1961, in a lower-middle-class family in Raipur, began his political career with the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP).

His father, Kanwar Lal Soni, had strong ties with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), and even former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee was familiar with the family.

Soni rose through the ranks, serving as the student union president at Durga College, Raipur, before becoming a councilor.

He was elected as Raipur’s mayor twice, from 2003 to 2010, and also served as chairman of the Raipur Development Authority.

In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, Soni won the Raipur seat on a BJP ticket, defeating Congress candidate Pramod Dubey.

Soni secured 8,37,902 votes, while Dubey received 4,89,664 votes.

First time contestant

Akash Sharma, the 35-year-old state president of the Chhattisgarh Youth Congress, is contesting the assembly elections for the first time.

Sharma previously served as president of NSUI Chhattisgarh from 2014 to 2020 and became the national secretary of NSUI in 2018.

Congress has added interest to the contest by fielding Akash Sharma in this BJP-dominated seat.

Senior Congress leaders, including Bhupesh Baghel, Charandas Mahant, Deepak Baij, and TS Singhdeo, supported his candidacy.

Although senior leader Pramod Dubey was also a contender, Akash emerged as the party’s choice.

In 2023, Akash applied for a ticket but was not selected. This time, the party has placed its trust in him.

Despite Raipur South being considered a BJP stronghold, Akash faces a tough challenge as Brijmohan Agrawal has wielded considerable influence in the area.

By-Elections in Chhattisgarh: A Key Indicator of Political Shifts

By-elections in Chhattisgarh have often been viewed as indicators of political changes.

For example, in 1988, Arjun Singh was appointed Chief Minister of undivided Madhya Pradesh during a period of internal conflicts and leadership struggles within the Congress party.

Despite not being a member of the Vidhan Sabha at the time, Singh later contested a by-election to secure his seat in the assembly.

The Kharsia assembly seat was formed in 1977, with Congress candidate Laxmi Prasad Patel winning the first election.

He held the seat continuously until 1988, when he resigned to make way for Arjun Singh. In the by-election that followed, Singh defeated BJP’s Dilip Singh Judev, solidifying Congress’s hold on Kharsia.

Although Judev lost the election, he was warmly received by supporters across many districts.

His gratitude rallies, where he was weighed with coins and paddy, left a lasting impression.

When Jogi Took Him Away in a Helicopter

When Ajit Jogi became the Chief Minister after Chhattisgarh was established as a separate state, he was not a member of the Legislative Assembly. One day, Jogi visited Pendra Marwahi and took the sitting BJP MLA, Ramdayal Uikey, with him in a helicopter.

Before BJP leaders could grasp what was happening, Uikey resigned from his position. Jogi repeatedly insisted he hadn’t coerced Uikey into resigning, but who would believe him?

Uikey, who had previously worked as a Patwari before winning his seat, was aware that Jogi had served as a collector in several districts.

In 2001, Jogi secured the Marwahi seat by a margin of over 51,000 votes. Uikey joined the Congress party, and in the 2003 assembly elections, the Congress nominated him for the Pali-Tanakhar seat, where he won in 2008 and 2013.

In 2018, Ramdayal Uikey rejoined the BJP, which gave him a ticket for the same Pali-Tanakhar seat where he had previously won three times as a Congress candidate. However, in this election, he lost to the Congress party.

Raman Singh, Pradeep Gandhi, and the Sting Operation

The second Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh, Raman Singh, was also not an MLA when he took office. As a minister at the Center, he was sent to contest against Jogi in Chhattisgarh and emerged victorious.

Following this, Pradeep Gandhi resigned from Rajnandgaon to contest the assembly elections alongside Raman Singh, who won from that seat. Gandhi, having vacated his seat for Singh, was later nominated by the BJP for the Lok Sabha elections and successfully became an MP.

However, Pradeep Gandhi was embroiled in a scandal after being implicated in a sting operation, “Operation Duryodhan,” conducted by journalists Anirudh Bahl and Suhasini Raj. This investigation revealed that several Indian MPs, including Gandhi, had solicited money for asking questions in Parliament. Consequently, the membership of these MPs was terminated.

The BJP’s Unexpected Loss While in Power

Rajendra Prasad Shukla, the first Speaker of the Chhattisgarh Assembly, was an MLA from Kota. Following his death on August 20, 2006, a by-election was scheduled for the Kota seat.

Former Chief Minister Ajit Jogi, now out of power, nominated his wife, Dr. Renu Jogi, for the election.

Despite the ruling party’s advantage, the BJP could not secure a victory here. Renu Jogi not only won the 2006 election but was also elected as an MLA in 2008, 2013, and 2018.

A similar scenario unfolded in the Vaishalinagar by-election, where the BJP, despite being in power, failed to win.

In November 2009, Congress candidate Bhajan Singh Nirankari received 47,225 votes (43.80%), while BJP’s Jageshwar Sahu garnered 45,997 votes (42.66%). An independent candidate, Reeti Deshlahra, received 11,477 votes (10.64%). Many attributed the BJP’s loss to the independent candidate’s impact.

Manturam Pawar and the 2014 Antagarh By-Election Scandal

In the 2014 Antagarh by-elections, Manturam Pawar, the Congress candidate, withdrew his candidacy at the last minute, leaving the party without a replacement.

Along with Pawar, seven other candidates also withdrew, handing the BJP candidate an uncontested victory.

Following the election, a viral audio recording surfaced, allegedly revealing a scandal involving the withdrawal of candidates through horse-trading.

The voices in the recording were purported to be those of Amit Jogi, Manturam Pawar, Dr. Puneet Gupta, and Ajit Jogi.