Of late,Chhattisgarh has seen the unfolding of a series of events of a nature so far alien to the state BJP and its chief minister. Raman Singh,CM since 2003,and who had known no dissent in the 12 years since he first became an MP defeating Congress heavyweight Motilal Vora,has suddenly become the target of attacks from disgruntled party members,though not always directly. Some,like veteran MP Dilip Singh Judeo,have complained to Raman Singh himself about government officials harassing party men. Others not as senior as Judeo have been circulating papers about key positions being given to favoured people. An MP has quit a key position saying Raman Singh did not take up the issues he had raised,while an MLA has taken on the government about a hike in the price of cement. Several leaders in the party have taken note of the dissent but have left Raman Singh to handle it on his own. The chief minister himself dismissed such talk,saying,There is no dissent within the party. We all meet and discuss things amicably. He had not been as composed recently when,following an allegation that his relatives had received land for illegal mining,he had reacted,Chhorunga nahin. I will not spare those spreading such news. BJP men burned copies of the newspaper carrying such reports and excise officials forced cable operators to switch off the channel covering the allegation. Those opposed to him felt he was instigated by the bureaucrats he allegedly favours,and linked his outburst to the dissent. He has never faced opposition before. The Congress was always managed; within the party there was no dissent, a party minister said. It is for the first time in his career that he is finding his own men against him,and is reacting angrily. The first noises were made by Judeo,who had been a strong contender for CM candidate in 2003. Judeo recently wrote the CM a letter it subsequently reached the media complaining about administrative terrorism and excessive dependence on bureaucrats with little space for party leaders. He cited several instances of partymen being harassed by government officials and of no action taken by the administration. Soon after,the papers began being circulated in party circles. Again leaked to the local media,these papers noted how the centre of power in the BJP and the RSS in the state has become restricted to a select few who have been accommodated to various posts of profit. Signed by junior members of the party,the papers indirectly accused the chief minister of fostering these men and also mentioned grievances of senior leaders belonging to a camp rivalling Singhs. It was effectively plotted that committed leaders like Nanki Ram Kanwar (Home Minister),Ramesh Bais (Raipur MP) do not become the chief minister, read one paper. Another detailed instances how tribal leaders like Ramsevak Painkra (state BJP president) and Sohan Potai ( Kanker MP) are humiliated. These papers glorified those in the anti-Raman Singh group while attacking leaders considered close to the chief miister. Then six-time MP Ramesh Bais,another CM-aspirant,resigned as chairperson of the Chhattisgarh Archery Federation,saying that IPS officer GP Singh,heading the federation,would not listen to him and that the chief minister would not consider his problems. And powerful MLA Devji Patel held a press conference over companies hiking the cement price by over Rs 100 in less than two months and accusing the government of not fulfilling its responsibilities. Accusing the government of having struck a deal with the companies,he said: When the government can impose a condition on power companies to sell electricity at a given cost,why cant it do that with cement manufacturers? Bais joined him and threatened to prevent cement plants from functioning,eventually forcing a reduction in the price by around Rs 30. Talking to The Indian Express,Patel echoed an allegation by Judeo,that the CM has no control on bureaucrats and the state is deep in corruption. He also questioned a practice of accommodating retired babus in the government. Ex-chief secretary Shivraj Singh was first made state chief election commissioner and is now political adviser to the CM. What political advice can a retired bureaucrat give? he said. Nand Kumar Sai,MP,reportedly went to the extent of suggesting a change at the top. The local media widely covered his remark that if such is the intention of people,then the central leadership must consider change in leadership. This will be beneficial to the state. When contacted days later,however,Sai said he had only meant that he was deeply disturbed by the dissent in the party. Veteran MLA Virendra Pandey,now suspended,feels that Raman Singh is a worse CM than Ajit Jogi. He recently released papers alleging that a person with a criminal background,Radha Krishna Gupta,was made chairperson of the Chhattisgarh Cooperative Marketing Federation by Raman Singh because he is the father-in-law of his OSD Om Prakash Gupta. Home Minister Kanwar admitted that there is dissent in the party. These leaders should not have expressed their views publicly, he said. BJP leaders are said to have conducted a confidential survey and found that the party,which now has 52 members in a House of 90,is likely to get a mere 25 seats should mid-term polls be held. The signs Dilip Singh Judeo,MP,complains to Raman Singh about government officials harassing party men Papers are circulated among BJP members saying a select few are at the centre of power in the BJP and the RSS Ramesh Bais,MP,resigns as chairperson of archery federation,saying the chief minister not taking his problems into consideration Devji Patel,MLA,accuses govt of not reining in companies that have hiked the price of cement Nand Kumar Sai,MP,quoted as having suggested a change at the top; he later tones it down
