Baghel expresses surprise for by-polls on single seat

Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel in a statement on Sunday has expressed surprise on declaration of by-polls by Election Commission of India for lone assembly seat of Dantewada in state.

Taking to media persons here at Swami Vivekanand Airport, Raipur while leaving for New Delhi, he raised exception on not conducting by-polls simultaneously on two vacant assembly seats in the state.

“It was anticipated that election must have been conducted simultaneously at Dantewada and Chitrakot assembly segments but it didn’t happen so”, he said expressing his surprise.

Notably, the Dantewada assembly constituency is lying vacant as BJP MLA from there Bhima Mandavi was killed in a Maoist attack in April this year.

Whereas the Chitrakot assembly seat got vacant as the sitting MLA of the Congress Deepak Baij vacated the seat after he was elected to Lok Sabha from Bastar seat.