Congress expels Manturam Pawar after he withdraws candidature for Antagarh assembly bypoll

RAIPUR: Opposition Congress today expelled Manturam Pawar from the party who in a surprise move withdrew his candidature for the Antagarh assembly bypoll in Chhattisgarh to be held next month.

"After his consent, Pawar was nominated as the party's candidate from the seat, but he cheated us at the final moment and insulted the emotions of hundreds of party workers. Taking it seriously, the Congress party's Chhattisgarh state chief Bhupesh Baghel expelled him from the party late in the evening today," Chhattisgarh's Congress general secretary and spokesperson Shailesh Nitin Trivedi said.

Alleging a "BJP role" behind Pawar's decision, Trivedi said the BJP felt threatened after the outcome of recent bypolls in different states which went against the party.

He alleged that expecting a similar debacle in Antagarh also, the BJP took the step which is equal to the "murder of democracy".

"We have been informed that Pawar is set to join the BJP which clearly indicates that the ruling BJP is behind it," Trivedi said.

The Antagarh assembly seat in Kanker district which is under the North Bastar division, has been vacant since former state forest minister Vikram Usendi, the sitting BJP MLA, resigned from the seat after winning the recent Lok Sabha poll from the Kanker seat.

The ruling BJP, the Congress and other parties had begun preparing for elections in the insurgency-hit constituency after bypoll schedule was announced on September 13.

However, in a major setback for the Congress candidate Pawar withdrew his candidature today from contest, almost at the last moment.

In last year's assembly election, Pawar had lost to Vikram Usendi by 5,171 votes, but the Congress backed Pawar, while the BJP fielded a popular tribal leader of the region called Bhojraj Naag.

For the Antagarh assembly bypoll, 14 candidates had filed their nominations and after scrutiny on August 28, one nomination was rejected, leaving 12 candidates in the fray, after Pawar's withdrawal.

The bypoll result will be declared on September 16.