Amid Chhattisgarh Congress tussle, Bhupesh Baghel gets UP elections role

With health minister T S Singh Deo and Baghel staking claim to the CM’s post in Chhattisgarh, and more than a dozen party MLAs camping in Delhi, the new assignment for Baghel is being seen as a clear message by political analysts in the state.

While the MLAs have asserted that they are united and want to meet their party leaders for reasons unrelated to the tussle, sources believe that the MLAs have gone in batches to showcase their support for the CM if the need arises.

“Baghel is being given more opportunities for him to explore. He was responsible for the party’s performance during the Assam elections as well. Despite the party not making a mark there, he is now being given the charge of the party’s performance in UP, which has bigger stakes,” a source from within the Congress said.

In Assam, despite Baghel’s intervention and an alliance with regional parties, Congress managed a vote share of only 20 per cent – the coalition managed to get 50 seats of the total 126.

Following the announcement, Baghel tweeted, “Respected national president Sonia Gandhi has instructed me to be the observer for the UP elections. It’s a big responsibility. I hope to fulfill all demands of the senior leaders.”

Baghel, who was in Bemetara on Saturday, told the media that what happened in Punjab with the ruling Congress can never be repeated in Chhattisgarh. About the MLAs’ visit to Delhi, he said, “Everyone is free to travel wherever they want to.”