In the upcoming Assembly polls in Chhattisgarh, Union Minister and BJP leader Renuka Singh will be contesting from the high profile Bharatpur-Sonhat constituency.
The Assembly elections have been scheduled in two phases in Chhattisgarh for which voting will has already been for 29 seats under phase-1 on November 7 and the second and final phase is slated on November 17. In the Bharatpur-Sonhat Assembly constituency BJP's Renuka Singh has been pitted against Congress MLA Gulab Kamro.
For the Bharatpur-Sonhat seat, there is a triangular fight between the Congress, BJP and the Gondwana Gantantra Party (GGP). This Assembly constituency came into existence in 2003 after being declared separate from the Mahendragarh Assembly constituency. Till now three Assembly elections have been held here in which the BJP won twice and the Congress once. The GGP also has a major influence in this Assembly constituency. It had polled more than 9,000 votes in the 2008 Assembly elections, over 18,000 votes in the 2013 elections and more than 26,000 votes in 2018. This is the reason why the Congress and the BJP are eyeing the significant Gond vote bank and are trying to poach MLAs from either party.
With Renuka Singh contesting from the Bharatpur-Sonhat Assembly constituency, the Congress is trying to project this election as "local versus outsider". Renuka is touting development as her main poll plank.
Political analysts feel that Renuka Singh's entry into the electoral fray will boost the BJP's chances of winning as there is speculation about her being one of the contenders for the post of Chief Minister if the BJP comes to power in the state.
