Raipur: On October 12, the Congress Central Election Committee (CEC) gave its nod to candidate selections for approximately 48 seats in the forthcoming Chhattisgarh Assembly elections slated for 2023. Notably, this approval included incumbent Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel, all cabinet ministers, and the assembly speaker, who have been cleared to contest the elections. Chief Minister Baghel is set to run for re-election from his previous constituency, Patan.
According to inside sources, there will be no reshuffling of ministerial tickets in Chhattisgarh, and all current ministers will participate in the electoral fray once more. In cases where multiple candidates are vying for the same seat in the state’s remaining 42 constituencies, the Congress President will make the final selection.
Additionally, the Congress CEC meeting concluded the allocation of seats for Mizoram, with official announcements forthcoming.
The Congress party is expected to reveal the list of Chhattisgarh candidates after Pitru Paksha, a period of reverence for ancestors in Hindu tradition.
Looking ahead, on October 13, the CEC meetings for Madhya Pradesh and Telangana are scheduled at approximately 11:00 am and 4:00 pm, respectively. The Election Commission (EC) recently disclosed the complete schedule for the upcoming assembly polls. Chhattisgarh will conduct voting in two phases, with the first phase covering 20 seats on November 7 and the second phase, encompassing the remaining 70 seats, scheduled for November 17.
Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar declared that the vote counting process for all five states will occur on December 3, a Sunday, following the elections.