Surguja: Reacting to the unexpected defeat of the Bhupesh Baghel-led Congress government in Chhattisgarh, former Deputy CM of the state and veteran Congress leader TS Singhdev admitted that primarily its 'anti-incumbency' and flaw in ticket distribution resulted in his party's defeat.
Singh Deo had also words of appreciation for ex-CM and BJP leader Raman Singh saying the latter's 'clean image' also largely helped the saffron party to get the upper hand over the Baghel-led Congress.
TS Singh Deo was candid in his reply when asked about the reason for his defeat in Ambikapur. "I am the reason for the defeat of Ambikapur. I take responsibility for this. I failed to present myself in front of the public. I did not get votes in Ambikapar city. I trailed by about 8,500 votes. I accept my shortcomings."
Singh Deo further said he could neither play the role of bride nor groom. "The family members(read voters) wanted to see me fitting in the role. Finally, they did not consider me worthy, the ex-Deputy CM said.
Singh Deo gave an interesting reply to the question of the CM race in the BJP. According to him, Raman Singh is the frontrunner and can be the No. 1 choice for the BJP. His second and third choices are Arun Sau and former IAS OP Chaudhary, who won from Raigarh.
Praising Raman Singh, Singh Deo said that the latter had been the CM of the state for 15 years, besides being a minister at the Centre. Singh with vast experience in governance has also done well in ticket distribution, Singh Deo said.
Speaking about Arun Sau, the Congress leader said Sau is close to the Sangh. He is a lawyer and an MP. Therefore, it is natural for him to be in the race too. Praising OP Chaudhary, Singh Deo said that he sees a bright future for OP Chaudhary. On the issue of a tribal Chief Minister, he said that there are two names from Surguja, Vishnu Dev Sai Singh and Renuka Singh. "This is an internal matter of BJP, so I don't want to speak much about it," Singh Deo said.
Despite losing polls, Singh Deo, who is popularly known as 'baba' said, "Still, if people feel that this baba can be of use to them, then I will be available to them all the time."
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