The issue of mining in the forests of Hasdeo Aranya has once again brought to the fore the underlying differences within the ruling Congress in Chhattisgarh. After objecting to the protests against the mining project, Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel last week stopped all mining work on ground in Hasdeo Aranya forests. Notably, the decision came after T S Singh Deo, his bite noire in the Cabinet, visited the forests and said that it left to him, not a single tree would be cut for the mining project.
Baghel had then put the project on hold, saying, “If T S Singh Deo doesn’t want trees to be cut, not even a branch would be harmed.” Singh Deo, in turn, thanked Baghel on social media.
Earlier, Baghel had hit out at those opposing mining in the area and said they should stop using electricity and “AC, fan, and cooler” before fighting for their cause.
While the chief minister’s move seems to have silenced the protesting voices of opposition and Adivasis in the region, the issue brought back the focus on a power tussle which the Congress had somehow managed to paper over a year back — Bhupesh Baghel vs T S Singh Deo.
The two leaders have been embroiled in an internal cold war for months now. While Singh Deo has missed several Cabinet meetings, the Baghel faction allegedly ensures that Singh Deo’s photographs rarely feature in government posters.
Last year, the simmering tensions between the two came out in public as they blamed each other for pushing the state government into crisis over the rotational chief ministership issue.
While sources close to Singh Deo have been claiming that the party leadership, at the time of the election victory in 2018, had agreed to split the five-year chief ministerial term between Baghel and Singh Deo, Baghel has publicly denied any such agreement. The CM has been stating that he is under the party’s order to continue as CM.
While the party’s top leadership temporarily placated the two leaders back then, it has failed to find a permanent solution. The Indian Express quoted sources saying that it is only a matter of time before the issue spills over.