Chhattisgarh: BSP snaps ties with Ajit Jogi’s party

Bhopal: After walking out of alliance with Samajwadi Party (SP) in Uttar Pradesh, Bahujan Samajwadi Party (BSP) has now decided to snap ties with former chief minister Ajit Jogi’s Janata Congress Chhattisgarh (JCC).

The decision was taken at the meeting of the state BSP at Raipur in Chhattisgarh late on Monday evening.

“Our party will go alone in the forthcoming urban and rural local body elections in Chhattisgarh”, president of Chhattisgarh unit of BSP Hemant Poyam said on Tuesday.

The meeting was convened to find out the reasons behind the dismal show of the party in the recently held Lok Sabha elections in Chhattisgarh.

BSP which had fielded its candidates in all the 11 LS seats in the polls in Chhattisgarh had drawn blank.

“We have decided to fight alone in the ensuing urban and rural local body elections in Chhattisgarh, due in August this year, since we felt that our alliance with Mr Jogi’s party did not benefit BSP”, a senior BSP leader of Chhattisgarh told this newspaper.

In a related development, Mr Jogi also announced to go alone in the forthcoming by-elections to two assembly seats in Chhattisgarh.

By-elections to Dantewada (ST) and Chitrokote (ST) assembly constituencies in Chhattisgarh may be held in October this year.

While by-polls to Dantewada was necessitated due to killing of local MLA bheema Mandavi (BJP) by Naxals at Shyamgiri in the district on April nine, by-elections to Chitrokote was needed following election of local MLA Deepak Baij (Congress) to Lok Sabha in the just conclude polls.

The BSP-JCC alliance, struck in September last year, had together secured seven out of total 90 assembly seats in Chhattisgarh in the November, 2018 polls.

While JCC secured five seats, BSP bagged two seats.