Chhattisgarh Assembly polls: Make or break for prominent faces

With his back to the wall

More than anyone else,this election will determine the future of this powerful Congress leader and his family. Sixty-eight,wheelchair-bound and out of power for 10 years,the former chief minister could well be in the last election of his career,with stakes as high as he has ever had to contend with. His wife Renu Jogi is an MLA,and their young son Amit has a good standing in the Youth Congress and NSUI. Jogi knew few in the Congress now accepted him,so for months he worked single-mindedly to set up a front within or outside the Congress,and to ensure that no party got a clear majority,so he could become kingmaker.

The plan did not materialise,the Congress leadership chose to largely ignore him,the smaller parties formed a united front without him,and he now seems to have fallen in line with his party. His goal now is to secure as many tickets as he can for his candidates,including his son. Also,he can no longer hope to gain from a Congress loss. His clout in the Raman Singh government comes from his ability to dent the Congress — which a defeat will dilute.

Jogi must also win himself — his wife has no political ambitions,and without the ex-CM’s weight behind him,Amit,surrounded by hostile leaders,is likely to be vulnerable.

RAMAN SINGH

Win-win,but vulnerable still

Some believe that the hurt that defeat will bring will be far greater than whatever strength a third straight victory will bestow on Raman Singh. His spin doctors have converted the elections into a Raman vs Others contest,leaving several BJP stalwarts sulking. The chief minister is not a conventional politician,and rides solely on the strength of his claims of development. But the quiet,laidback and non-interfering style comes bundled with the absence of a mass following,and makes Singh vulnerable to opponents seeking to replace him in a coup. Indeed,should he lose,the chief minister faces a rapid slide in state politics — unless he is accommodated by the BJP at the Centre.

BRIJMOHAN AGARWAL

Ambition and brinkmanship

If Raman Singh is the BJP’s face in Chhattisgarh,the powerful minister Agarwal is its heart. The contrast with the CM is stark: Agarwal is loud,seems to care nothing about the allegations of corruption that he routinely faces,works hard to build public contacts,and never disappoints anyone who invites him to a wedding or funeral. He does not portray himself as being junior to Singh,never conceals his ambition to get the top post,and lets go of no chance to score a point against the CM. So when Singh took credit for Raipur’s quality cricket stadium,Agarwal was quick to claim it was his PWD’s achievement. When Singh’s PR machinery covered the town with his hoardings,Agarwal responded with his own,bigger pictures. And last month,he called senior bureaucrats of the finance department,headed by Singh,corrupt,and demanded the resignation of the chief secretary and additional chief secretary.

It would seem unlikely that a minister who accuses his CM’s officers of making a “hefty amount” while giving out a contract would survive without even a rap on the knuckles. Agarwal did.

BHUPESH BAGHEL

Jogi baiter goes for broke

Baghel,the only Congress leader to take on Jogi,is seen as someone with a line to 10 Janpath. The powerful Kurmi leader who served as a minister in the cabinets of Digvijaya Singh and Jogi,was appointed Congress programme coordinator after the May 25 Darbha attack.

Baghel lost in 2008,and another defeat may damage him irreparably. But a victory would make him a probable candidate for CM,should the Congress win. More than any Congress leader,he is seen as fighting Raman Singh over corruption charges. There are several cases in which Baghel took the lead,like the iron ore leases to Pushp Steel Company that were ultimately cancelled by the high court.

UMESH PATEL

Hoping to be his father’s son

The young computer engineer who lost his father and elder brother in the Darbha attack faces the task of keeping the family legacy alive. He is likely to get a ticket from Kharsiya,the constituency that his father Nand Kumar Patel represented when he was PCC chief. Kharsiya has been the Patels’ bastion for decades. The slain leader began his career by defeating BJP state president Lakhiram Agarwal,and went on to win five consecutive elections and held important portfolios in several governments.

Umesh is by contrast a novice,and has no political experience like his brother Dinesh,who assisted their father for years. Umesh is currently touring his father’s constituency,meeting people. The BJP has indicated that it may field a soft candidate against him,but if he still loses,the Congress may not give him a second chance. That would mean curtains for the powerful Patels,the biggest casualty of the Maoist attack.