BSP announces candidates for 6 Chhattisgarh Lok Sabha seats

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The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) on Tuesday announced candidates for six out of 11 Lok Sabha seats in Chhattisgarh.

The announcement was made by the Mayawati-led party's state unit chief Hemant Poyam.

Senior party leader and former MLA Dauram Ratnakar has been fielded from Janjgir-Champa (Scheduled Caste) Lok Sabha constituency while Aaytu Ram Mandavi will contest from Bastar Scheduled Tribe) seat, he said.

The other four are Sube Singh Dhurve (Kanker- ST), Maya Bhagat (Surguja- ST), Innocent Kujur (Raigarh-ST) and Geetanjali Singh (Durg), Poyam said.

Ratnakar had served as BSP state president earlier and was three-time MLA from Pamgarh assembly constituency in Jangir-Champa district in undivided Madhya Pradesh, Poyam said.

Tribal leader Mandavi has been given another chance from Bastar seat after losing from there in the 2009 general elections.

Dhruve is the sarpanch (village head) of Markatola panchayat in Kanker district, Poyam informed.

Bhagat, who has been fielded from Surguja, had lost the 2018 Assembly polls from Lundra.

The BSP and the Janata Congress Chhattisgarh (J) led by Ajit Jogi have entered into an alliance for the April-May Lok Sabha polls, Poyam said, though he added he was not aware of the seat-sharing formula.

Meanwhile, Amit Jogi, former MLA and son of Ajit Jogi, said the parliamentary board of JCC(J) will meet after Holi (March 21) to decide on candidates.

"The alliance of JCC (J) and BSP is unbreakable. Our coalition will continue," he said.

Chhattisgarh will vote in three phases for its 11 parliamentary constituencies on April 11, April 18 and April 23.

Bastar (ST) constituency will go to polls on April 11 in the first phase, while Kanker (ST), Rajnandgaon and Mahasamund will vote on April 18 in the second phase.

Seven Lok Sabha seats, namely Surguja (ST), Raigarh (ST), Janjgir-Champa (SC), Raipur, Durg, Korba and Bilaspur will witness polling on April 23.

In the 2014 general elections, the BJP had won 10 seats while the Congress got one.