R Krishna Das
The road to Mumbai from Ranchi passes through Chhattisgarh. And when Ramesh Bais has been asked to shift to Mumbai from Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh cannot be circumvented, politically.
Chhattisgarh’s senior leader Ramesh Bais has been elevated as Governor of Maharashtra. He was holding a comparatively smaller state of Jharkhand. The development has come as a surprise for political pundits. But those familiar with the move see it as a calculated move with focus on Chhattisgarh that goes to the polls later in the year.
Bais belongs to the same community that Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel represents. Following the latter’s local touch, the community has an inclination towards the Congress—a hole that Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is desperate to plug that will pave the way to return to power in Chhattisgarh. Besides the rural economy, caste factor will be a major bet of Baghel to retain power in the state.
Kurmi community is part of Other Backward Class (OBC) and is claimed to hold the biggest share in the state’s population. While scheduled tribes have 32 per cent share, OBC reportedly have 38 per cent stake in Chhattisgarh’s population.
“Like BJP has been reminding people that it has made a tribal to head country’s top Constitutional post, it will propagate Bais’ promotion in Chhattisgarh,” said a political analyst. Bais was shifted from Chhattisgarh politics in 2019 and appointed as the Governor of Tripura in 2019. Later, he was transferred to neighbouring Jharkhand.
Despite being in the Raj Bhawan, the six times Member of Parliament (MP) from Raipur continued to remain connected with the party cadre and community members in Chhattisgarh. “His clout in the community continues that will surely benefit the BJP to pull a section of voters to its kitty,” the analyst said, adding that making Bais the Governor of second largest states of the country in population count and third largest in area was not an impromptu action.
The appointment of Biswa Bhusan Harichandan as the new Governor of Chhattisgarh also has political significance. The 84-year-old former Odisha Minister is known for making quick decision and prompt delivery that his predecessor Anusuiya Uikiye has been missing.
There were many crucial issues that Uikiye reportedly failed to handle timely. “The delay in taking decision and action has complicated the situation while her public statement further worsened the condition,” a senior BJP leader said. Harichandan fits in the criteria.
Uikiye has transferred to Manipur so as to disarm the Congress from fueling that a tribal has been fired!
