Vishnu Deo Sai’s turnaround: Replaced as state BJP chief pre-polls, named Chhattisgarh CM post-victory

A four-time Lok Sabha MP, Sai was made Chhattisgarh BJP chief three times — in 2006, 2011 and 2020. But his last term was cut short, as he was replaced last year, ahead of the Assembly polls. In July this year, Sai was named a member of the BJP national executive.

Sai, who hails from the Surguja tribal belt in north Chhattisgarh, where the BJP swept all the 14 seats, is among the party’s most senior tribal leaders in the state.

A BJP leader said his appointment shows that the central leadership wants to respect seniority and the ability to take along different sections of the party. “He is one of the most accepted leaders in the state unit and ran the party effectively during his terms as the state unit president,” said a BJP leader in Delhi who worked with the Chhattisgarh unit.

Born in Jashpur district, Sai comes from a family with a political background. Three of his family members were elected representatives (Assembly and Lok Sabha) in the 1940s to 1970s.

The late BJP leader Dilip Singh Judeo, known for leading the “ghar wapsi” campaign in Chhattisgarh, was among those who backed Sai, whose political career began in the 1980s.

Starting from the gram panchayat elections, Sai rose through the ranks, making his way to the Assembly in undivided Madhya Pradesh, where he represented Tapkara constituency for two terms from 1990-1998.

He then moved on to the Lok Sabha, being elected from Raigarh four times (1999 to 2019). After the BJP government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi came to power at the Centre in 2014, Sai was made Union minister. However, he was denied a party ticket in 2019.

In between, after Chhattisgarh was carved out of Madhya Pradesh, Sai lost the Chhattisgarh Assembly elections twice – in 2003 and 2008 — from Pathalgaon seat.

This time, he won the Kunkuri seat in Surguja division by 25,541 votes. The BJP’s tally of 54 of the total 90 seats was propelled by its performance in the tribal regions in north and south.

In Surguja, the BJP wrested all 14 Assembly seats this time, dealing a massive blow to the Congress’s chances of retaining power. The Congress had swept the region in 2018. In the southern tribal belt of Bastar, the BJP won eight of the 12 seats.

— With inputs from Liz Mathew