Thaindian News

Raipur, May 13 (IANS) Chhattisgarh’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Friday won the Bastar Lok Sabha seat for the fifth time in a row. The BJP candidate Dinesh Kashyap won the seat by over 88,900 votes defeating his nearest rival Kawasi Lakhma of the Congress.

The BJP state headquarters, Ekatm Parisar, wore a festive look after the result was announced at Jagdalpur, headquarters of the Bastar region, while the Congress state office, Gandhi Bhawan, was a deserted place.

The BJP termed the by-election victory “peoples’ approval” of its policy towards the state’s poor” while the Congress alleged the BJP victory was “a result of wide misuse of money power and government machinery”.

“It’s a victory for peace and development in violence-hit Bastar. Despite disruptions by the Maoists, people came out in large numbers on May 8 to vote and to recognise the BJP government’s work for the poor people. The victory is clearly the peoples’ approval of the BJP’s policy as well as state government’s efficient administration,” said an elated Brijmohan Agrawal, a senior minister.

However, Congress leader and former chief minister Ajit Jogi, who commanded the Bastar campaign for the party, said “the BJP managed to win due to wide misuse of money power and government machinery”.

He added that “the BJP rigged polls in the interiors of Bastar where voters hardly turned up due to fear of Maoists”.

The BJP has been winning the seat, reserved for Scheduled Tribes, continuously since 1998.

The by-election was caused by the death of BJP’s tribal leader Baliram Kashyap. His son was made candidate by the party to cash in on Baliram’s popularity in the area.

There were eight candidates in the fray in Bastar.