With five states — Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Delhi, Rajasthan and Mizoram — going to assembly polls between November 11 and the first week of December, it is clearly a battle between Congress and BJP with the two parties slugging it out in four of the five states.
Touted as the semifinals before the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, the assembly polls will see five chief ministers taking the acid test with BJP's Raman Singh being the first to do so in Chattisgarh.
While pre-poll surveys have predicted a third-term as Chhattisgarh chief minister for Singh, whose stern stand on Maoists and good governance give him an edge over the others, his fate is in the hands of the electorate who will vote in two phases — November 11 and 19 — to elect its 90-member assembly.
Though exit polls favour Raman Singh, his performance as the chief minister is not beyond scrutiny. While the BJP claims to have fulfilled all the promises made in the 2008 manifesto, a glance at the document speaks otherwise.
A bunch of promises made to the Chhattisgarh farmers before the last Assembly polls are yet to translate into reality. Interest free loans for farmers and a law to conserve farm land, free 5 HP electricity for farmers are yet to see the light of the day.
People in the remote areas of the state do not yet have access to basic civic amenities like clean drinking water and toilets.
Another big blot on the BJP government in Chhattisgarh is the deadly Maoist attack on Congress convoy on May 25, which wiped out the top brass including prominent state leaders like Mahendra Karma and Nand Kumar Patel.
The Raman Singh government had to face a lot of flak for its handling of the situation and the issue will come back to haunt them in this election.
The Congress leadership has already raked up the issue with Congress scion Rahul Gandhi slamming the BJP government for the dastardly attack during a rally in the poll-bound state on November 8.
Asking the voters not to forget the incident and to vote Congress to power, Rahul said that it was "not an attack on Congress party but on the people".
For Congress, which is trying to play the sympathy card by reviving the Naxal attack issue, it is really a double-edged sword as it lost its top brass in the attack and has only former chief minister Ajit Jogi to depend on during the litmus test.
While Jogi himself is not playing the field this time, his son Amit and wife Renu will contest the elections from Marwahi and Kota respectively.
Speculations are rife that the former chief minister was not projected in a prominent way as the Congress feared a negative impact on its prospects.
Though the Congress has tried its best to not make it Raman Singh Vs Jogi, media reports suggest otherwise as most of the 90 candidates are said to have Jogi's support.
What remains to be seen is whether Jogi, who was also the first chief minister of Chhattisgarh after it was carved out of Madhya Pradesh, can wield the same power again.
KEY CONTENDERS
BJP:
-
Raman Singh (from Rajnandgaon): Singh, 61, is an ayurvedic doctor turned politician, and has been in power since 2003.
-
Premprakash Pandey (former speaker of the Chhattisgarh Assembly)
-
BJP state spokesperson Srichand Sundarani (Raipur city north)
Congress:
-
Amit and Renu Jogi (son and wife of Ajit Jogi),
-
Amitesh Shukla (son of late Madhya Pradesh CM, SC Shukla)
SCHEDULE OF CHHATTISGARH ASSEMBLY ELECTIONS
Date of Issue of Gazette Notification
Phase1: October 18
Phase 2: October 25
Last Date for Nominations
Phase1: October 25
Phase 2: November 1
Scrutiny of Nominations to be closed on
Phase 1: October 26
Phase 2: November 2
Last Date for withdrawing candidatures
Phase 1: October 28
Phase 2: November 4
Date of Poll
Phase 1: November 11
Phase 2: November 19
Date of counting: Sunday, December 8
Total Number of Assembly Constituencies: 90
-
Constituencies reserved for Candidates from Scheduled Caste (SCs): 10
-
Constituencies reserved for Candidates from Scheduled Tribes (STs): 29
Population of the State: 2,55,45,198
Total Number of Electors: 1,67,96,174
Number of Polling Stations: 21,418
Number of General, Expenditure, Police & Awareness Observers deployed
General Observers: 90
Police Observers: 27
Expenditure Observers: 30
Awareness Observers: 9
Poll expenditure limit per candidate: Rs16 Lakh
Majority: 46
Contestants
-
Total Contestants in Fray: 1066
-
Average contestants per constituency: 12
-
Minimum contestants in a constituency: 4
-
Maximum contestants in a constituency: 29
Current status:
BJP: 50
Congress: 38
BSP 2
What the pre-poll surveys are saying:
A recent opinion poll has clearly indicated that it is the current chief minister, Raman Singh, who may help the Bharatiya Janata Party win for the 3rd time, on the basis of the work and progress that he has brought about in the Chhattisgarh State.
BJP is likely to win 61-71 seats as per the pre-poll survey conducted by CNN IBN, while Congress may win about 16-24 seats.
The ABP-News-Dainik Bhaskar-Nielson survey today said that the BJP has been predicted to lead with 44 per cent vote share while the Congress is likely to get around 27 seats. Read here
LATEST UPDATES
08/11/2013: A dastardly landmine attack by Maoists last May eliminated the entire Congress leadership in Chhattisgarh, leaving it rudderless and the party is now banking heavily on the sympathy factor in the Assembly elections. Read here
07/11/2013: BJP's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi on Thursday hit out at Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and called him an "arrogant" man whose government appeared to be "happy" after the Patna blasts. Read here
07/11/2013: Launching a blistering attack on Raman Singh-led BJP government in Chhattisgarh over law and order situation, Congress President Sonia Gandhi today reminded people of the May 25 Maoist ambush in Bastar that had wiped out almost the entire Congress leadership. Read here
07/11/2013: IEDs found in poll-bound Chhattisgarh ahead of Sonia Gandhi, Narendra Modi rallies Read here
07/11/2013: In contesting rallies in Chhattisgarh, Sonia Gandhi evokes, and Narendra Modi mocks, the Congress legacy Read here
07/11/2013: Trying to win a third consecutive term, chief minister Raman Singh released a populist pro-poor manifesto for the tribal state from a swanky hotel in Raipur. Read here
06/10/2013: Election Commission shifts 167 polling stations in Chhattisgarh to 'safer' areas Read here
05/10/2013: BJP showers sops for poor in manifesto Read here
04/11/2013: Free 35 kg rice a month, free power supply to farmers, crop loans to peasants at zero per cent interest rate are among the sops promised by Congress in its manifesto for Chhattisgarh assembly elections scheduled this month. Read here
04/11/2013: Chhattisgarh polls: List of BJP, Congress candidates Read here
31/10/2013: Centre directs Chhattisgarh to beef up security ahead of polls Read here
30/10/2013: Anti-Maoist forces worried about novice cops on poll duty in Chhattisgarh Read here
29/10/2013: All claims about Chhattisgarh’s development under the Raman Singh-led Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government are overhyped and a result of statistical jugglery, claimed Ajit Jogi in an interview to Zee Media’s Bharat Bhagya Vidhata. Read here
28/10/2013: BJP announces candidates for 2nd phase of Chhattisgarh polls Read here
28/10/2013: BJP to retain power in Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh: Survey Read here
20/10/2013: The BJP Sunday finalised 67 candidates for the forthcoming assembly elections in Chhattisgarh, a party leader said. Read here
21/10/2013: Ajit Jogi's wife, son Congress candidates in Chhattisgarh Read here
18/10/2013: With Assembly elections nearing in Chhattisgarh, police have received inputs of Naxals planting Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) near polling booths in the Maoist-hotbed of Bastar division in a bid to disrupt the electoral process. Read here
List of the Assembly Constituencies in Chhattisgarh
1 Bharatpur-Sonhat (ST)
2 Manendragarh
3 Baikunthpur
4 Premnagar
5 Bhatgaon
6 Pratappur (ST)
7 Ramanujganj (ST)
8 Samri (ST)
9 Lundra (ST)
10 Ambikapur
11 Sitapur (ST)
12 Jashpur (ST)
13 Kunkuri (ST)
14 Pathalgaon (ST)
15 Lailunga (ST)
16 Raigarh
17 Sarangarh (SC)
18 Kharsia
19 Dharamjaigarh (ST)
20 Rampur (ST)
21 Korba
22 Katghora
23 Pali-Tanakhar (ST)
24 Marwahi (ST)
25 Kota
26 Lormi
27 Mungeli (SC)
28 Takhatpur
29 Bilha
30 Bilaspur
31 Beltara
32 Masturi (SC)
33 Akaltara
34 Janjgir-Champa
35 Sakti
36 Chandrapur
37 Jaijaipur
38 Pamgarh (SC)
39 Saraipali (SC)
40 Basna
41 Khallari
42 Mahasamund
43 Bilaigarh (SC)
44 Kasdol
45 Baloda Bazar
46 Bhatapara
47 Dharsiwa
48 Raipur Rural
49 Raipur City West
50 Raipur City North
51 Raipur City South
52 Arang (SC)
53 Abhanpur
54 Rajim
55 Bindranawagarh (ST)
56 Sihawa (ST)
57 Kurud
58 Dhamtari
59 Sanjari Balod
60 Dondi Lohara (ST)
61 Gunderdehi
62 Patan
63 Durg-Rural
64 Durg City
65 Bhilai Nagar
66 Vaishali Nagar
67 Ahiwara (SC)
68 Saja
69 Bemetara
70 Nawagarh (SC)
71 Pandariya
72 Kawardha
73 Khairagarh
74 Dongargarh (SC)
75 Rajnandgaon
76 Dongargaon
77 Khujji
78 Mohla-Manpur (ST)
79 Antagarh (ST)
80 Bhanupratappur (ST)
81 Kanker (ST)
82 Keshkal (ST)
83 Kondagaon (ST)
84 Narayanpur (ST)
85 Bastar (ST)
86 Jagdalpur
87 Chitrakot (ST)
88 Dantewada (ST)
89 Bijapur (ST)
90 Konta (ST)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}