Chhattisgarh Assembly election | ‘Swing’ belt of Bilaspur could prove crucial for both Congress, BJP

Chhattisgarh Assembly election: In Bilaspur division, the Congress and the BJP battle for 25 seats. Both parties deployed top guns for campaigning in the region. BJP claims to win 20 seats, Congress promises to hike paddy procurement rate &and waive loans if they retain power.

As the 25 constituencies in Chhattisgarh’s Bilaspur division go to polls on November 17, the Congress and the BJP would be slugging it out in this belt which sends nearly a third of MLAs to the 90-member State Assembly.

Among the five administrative divisions of the State, the Bilaspur division, located in the central region, has the highest number of 25 Assembly constituencies which will play a crucial role in deciding the winner this time.

Notably, this was the only division which the Congress did not sweep in 2018, while the BJP, which faced a rout elsewhere, won nearly half of its State-wide tally in this region.

The division had 24 seats in 2018, of which, the Congress won 12 while the BJP won seven. The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) won two and the then Ajit Jogi-led Janta Congress Chhattisgarh (Jogi) three.

After the new district of Sarangarh-Bilaigarh was created, the Bilaigarh seat, earlier in the Raipur division, was included in the Bilaspur division. Bilaigarh was won by the Congress in 2018.

The BSP, which was in the second spot in two seats in 2018, has entered into an alliance with the Gondwana Ganatantra Party (GGP) this time. The Aam Aadmi Party is also in the fray.

Both the BJP and Congress deployed their top guns for campaigning in the Bilaspur division this time. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi held rallies in the region.