Leaders changing sides, Congress MLAs joined BJP when ticket was cut
Angered by not getting a ticket from the ruling congress in chhattisgarh, party mla Chintamani Maharaj
joined bjp on Tuesday. Maharaj took membership during a function at Ambikapur, the headquarters of Surguja
district, in the presence of BJP's chhattisgarh in-charge Om Mathur and state unit's General Secretary
(Organization) Pawan Sai. He is the third congress mla who has adopted a rebellious attitude after not getting
a ticket in the assembly elections. Mathur told reporters, This is Chintamani Maharaj's homecoming. There
must have been some reason in the past, that is why he had left BJP. Today we are very happy that our former
worker who established the party in the area has returned to the party. The entire party welcomes him.
Chintamani Maharaj was earlier in BJP. He joined congress before the 2013 assembly elections.
Will Maharaj get a chance in the lok sabha elections?
When asked whether bjp would field Maharaj in next year's lok sabha elections, Mathur said let's wait for it.
Maharaj currently represents Samari seat of Balrampur district. This time congress has fielded Vijay Paikra.
bjp has made Udheshwari Paikra its candidate from this seat, who is a member of Balrampur District
Panchayat. He contested the 2013 assembly elections from Lundra seat on congress ticket and was elected
mla for the first time.
Maharaj had contested elections from Samari in 2018
In the 2018 elections, congress had fielded Maharaj from Samari seat where he defeated BJP's Siddhanath
Paikra by a margin of 21,923 votes. Last week, senior bjp mla Brijmohan Aggarwal and former state
president vishnu Dev Sai had met Maharaj during a religious program in Samari area. After the meeting,
Maharaj had told reporters that if he is fielded from Ambikapur seat (against congress candidate and Deputy
Chief minister TS Singh Deo), he may join the BJP.