Chhattisgarh assembly elections 2023: Poll dates out as BJP, Congress gear up to face each other

Chief minister Bhupesh Baghel has been pitching himself as a son of the soil

The Election Commission of India on October 9 announced that Chhattisgarh will vote in two phases on November 7 and 17. The votes will be counted on December 3.

The battle in the state is majorly between BJP and Congress. In 2018, Congress won 68 seats out of 90, garnering a vote share of 43.9%. The BJP managed to win 15 seats and gather a vote share of 33.6%.

In the first phase, 20 seats will head for polls while the remaining 70 constituencies will vote in the second phase, Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar said at a press conference.

The term of the Chhattisgarh assembly is scheduled to end on January 3, 2024.  The state has 2.03 crore voters. According to Kumar, there will be 24,109 polling stations with 4,851 in urban areas and 19,258 in rural areas.

Also read: Chhattisgarh: Congress and BJP grapple with ticket distribution difficulties

The Congress is focusing on the issue of inflation and trying to corner the BJP on this front. The Congress has also launched some welfare schemes including Rajiv Gandhi Kisan Nyay and Godhan Nyay Yojana.

Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel has been pitching himself as a son of the soil. He is said to have a significant hold over the Other Backward Classes (OBC) and rural voters. However, there have been reports of factionalism and infighting in the party's state unit.  TS Singh Deo had raised a banner of revolt multiple times in the last few years. Finally, the party had to appoint him as the deputy chief minister earlier this year.

In a report by  Hindustan Times,  a Congress insider said the party is likely to lose in all four regions ( Surguja, Bilaspur, Bastar and Durg) unlike the 2018 elections. According to the Congress insider,  a large number of first-time MLAs have not performed well which has resulted in anti-incumbency in these regions. "Some castes which voted for Congress in 2018, are inclined towards BJP (this time) like Sahus who comprise around 12% of the voters who voted for Congress in 2018 with the hope that Sahu leader Tamradhwaj Sahu will be the chief minister. But now since it is almost clear that Baghel will be chief minister if Congress wins, Sahus have moved towards BJP,” said a Congress leader to Hindustan Times. 

Meanwhile, the BJP is accusing Congress of corruption and unfulfilled promises. It claims that Congress failed to deliver on its promise of reducing electricity bills and has indulged in various scams. The party also hopes that the “Modi factor” may give it an edge over rival parties. RSS and its members are expected to work for the party on the ground, a BJP functionary said.

The elections will begin on November 7 in Mizoram too.  Polling in Madhya Pradesh will take place on November 17. Rajasthan and Telangana will go to polls on November 23 and 30 respectively.