Senior Congress leader TS Singh Deo has been chosen as the new deputy chief minister of Chhattisgarh. KC Venugopal, AICC general secretary (organisation), on Wednesday, confirmed the appointment. TS Singh Deo is one the tallest Congress leaders in the state and a political rival of Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel. Chhattisgarh goes to polls later this year.

“INC President Sh. Mallikarjun @kharge ji has approved the proposal for the appointment of Sh. TS Singh Deo @TS_SinghDeo ji as the Deputy Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh. He is a loyal Congress leader and an able administrator. The state will benefit greatly from his services as Deputy CM. We are confident that the people of Chhattisgarh will re-elect the Congress with a thumping majority under the leadership of Kharge ji and Rahul Gandhi ji,” Venugopal tweeted.

INC President Sh. Mallikarjun @kharge ji has approved the proposal for appointment of Sh. TS Singh Deo @TS_SinghDeo ji as the Deputy Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh.

He is a loyal Congress leader and an able administrator. The state will benefit greatly from his services as…— K C Venugopal (@kcvenugopalmp) June 28, 2023

The announcement was made hours after a meeting of the Congress leadership in Delhi. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, Rahul Gandhi and the senior Chhattisgarh leaders were present.

How will Congress benefit from T S Singh Deo’s appointment?

Congress has said that the party will go into elections under Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel’s leadership. But Singh Deo is one of the popular Congress leaders in Chhattisgarh and with his appointment as deputy CM, he will also have a say in the election campaign.

“As Deputy Chief Minister, he will now have much more say in the design and execution of the campaign besides the selection of candidates. Although late, it is an acceptance of his stature,” a party leader told the Indian Express.

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When Congress came to power in 2018 Baghel and Singh Deo had reportedly agreed on an unwritten formula of rotational chief ministership, with each having the seat for 2.5 years. The existence of the agreement was denied by Baghel later.

This caused Singh Deo to rebel against Baghel but he did not create a crisis in the party. So, the move to make Singh Deo the deputy CM is an indication that the Congress party does not want to go into elections with one of its senior leaders unhappy.

Who is T S Singh Deo?

Tribhuvaneshwar Saran Singh Deo was born on October 31, 1952. He is the titular Maharaja of Chhattisgarh's Surguja and he is one of the richest MLAs of the state.

TS Singh Deo was first elected to the Legislative Assembly in 2008 and he currently serves as an MLA from Ambikapur constituency, from where he has won thrice since 2008.

He was among the frontrunners for the post of Chief Minister when Congress came to power in 2018. He was pipped by Bhupesh Baghel, and both have been in a power tussle since then.

Singh Deo was appointed as a cabinet minister, holding five portfolios, health and family welfare, 20-point program implementation, medical education, panchayat and rural development and commercial taxes.

(Edited by : Sudarsanan Mani)