Bureaucrat-turned-politician and former Chhattisgarh chief minister Ajit Jogi (72) succeeded in registering the presence of his regional party ‘Janta Congress Chhattisgarh-J’ (JCC-J) in the 2018 Assembly polls 2018, winning five seats. He now nurtures the hope of winning Lok Sabha seats too while continuing an alliance with Mayawati’s Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP). In a conversation with Ejaz Kaiser he revealed his priorities for the upcoming elections. Excerpts:
Your party opened its account by winning 5 seats in the Assembly elections. Is JCC-J going with the same spirit for the Lok Sabha elections?
What political stalwarts couldn’t do in 62 years in undivided Madhya Pradesh, we achieved in just two years after getting recognition from the Election Commission. Our enthusiasm and momentum will persist for the Lok Sabha elections as our ideology remains ‘Chhattisgarh First’, where and voices of the state are heard in Delhi.
But JCC-J couldn’t get enough seats to be a ‘Kingmaker’
Our alliance (JCC-J & BSP) secured 14 percent votes and 7 (of the 90) seats. People were very disillusioned with the Raman Singh-led BJP government. His party was delimitated to merely 15 seats. If the BJP had not performed so badly, we definitely would have played a decisive role in the government formation.
Now what will be your key political agenda?
We have worked-out three political targets. To stop communal forces in the country, to ensure a formation of the government of a majority of poor, hardworking people under the leadership of ‘Behen’(Sister) Mayawati and to get voted to victory from the state so that their people in Delhi can express themselves with firm equality and not as courtiers.
Will there be a seat sharing plan again?
Our coalition is not just of two parties but of two hearts. We will contest jointly.
The BSP unilaterally announced six candidates without consulting you or the JCC-J chief. Comments?
The alliance remains firm. Such incidents are a part and parcel of coalition politics.
Will you contest this time?
The parliamentary board of the party (JCC-J) will decide.
You say you don’t have the money to contest?
Our party cadres are my real asset. We may not have money or muscle, but we are confident of winning the trust of the masses. Owing to a lack of funds, we lagged behind the BJP and the Congress in ensuring to take our poll pledges (through notarised affidavits) to the masses.
During the Assembly polls you didn’t consider the Congress as the force to reckon with, but the party won 68 seats.
Strong anti-incumbency, coupled with the people’s firm determination, ousted the BJP government. The Congress is 150-year-old political party with a strong organisational setup. So definitely it can’t be ignored.
Several leaders and party cadres left your party after the Assembly polls alleging a lack of democracy in the party’s working. Is it a setback?
They left and joined the Congress because of a craving to taste power. Many who left us are at the end of their political career and know that the Congress has a clear mandate. It doesn’t bother us. We will continue to be the voice of the people and expose every wrongdoing of the government.
How you assess the work of the Bhupesh Baghel government so far?
It is too early to comment. However, the government failed to fulfil its major electoral promises. Whatever they have done is half-baked and aimed to earn brownie points. A majority of the farmers continue to be ineligible for a loan waiver. What about the liquor ban?
What about the [Prime Minister Narendra] Modi factor this time?
It is not a factor. The people are more concerned with electing someone who can solve their everyday issues.