In view of the upcoming assembly elections in Chhattisgarh, the main opposition BJP has decided to take out Parivartan Yatra in the state. This yatra will cover a distance of 2,989 kilometers in 87 assembly constituencies. This yatra will be started from two different places in the state from September 12 and September 16, Dantewada (South Chhattisgarh) and Jashpur (North Chhattisgarh).
BJP state unit president Arun Sao told a press conference here that Union Home Minister Amit Shah will flag off the first Parivartan Yatra after taking the blessings of Maa Danteshwari during a public rally in Dantewada on September 12. He said that this 16-day yatra will cover a distance of 1,728 kilometers in 21 districts.
Sao told that BJP National President JP Nadda will flag off the second Parivartan Yatra in Jashpur on September 16. He said the yatra will cover a distance of 1,261 kilometers in 12 days in Bilaspur and Surguja divisions of the state. He said that under both the yatras, there will be 84 public meetings, 85 welcome meetings and seven road shows. This yatra will end in Bilaspur after covering a distance of 2,989 kilometers in 87 assembly constituencies.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to attend the concluding ceremony of the yatra. Asked why three assembly constituencies have been kept out as there are a total of 90 assembly seats in the state, Sao said Bijapur, Sukma and Antagarh constituencies (all three Maoist-affected) have not been included in the yatra, but when If the Yatra passes through the surrounding constituencies, people from all three constituencies will participate in it.
He said that the BJP will highlight the failures of the Bhupesh Baghel government during the ‘yatra being undertaken to oust the Congress regime’ from the state. Senior leaders of the Center and the state will participate in the yatra. He said senior leaders of the state would attend both the visits for two days each.
After being in power in Chhattisgarh for 15 years (2003-2018) under the leadership of Raman Singh, the BJP faced a massive defeat at the hands of the Congress in the 2018 assembly elections. The party is now trying to return to power. The BJP had last month released its first list of candidates for the 21 seats where it had lost to the Congress in 2018.
The election schedule for the 90-member Chhattisgarh Assembly has not been announced yet. In the 2018 assembly elections, Congress won 68 out of total 90 seats, while BJP came second by winning 15 seats. Janata Congress Chhattisgarh-Jogi won five seats and its ally Bahujan Samaj Party won two seats. Congress currently has 71 seats.