The political atmosphere of Chhattisgarh has been charged up following allegations by senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh and former Deputy Chief Minister T S Singhdeo that the BJP-led Central government was conspiring to privatise the Nagarnar Steel Plant in Bastar.

The issue has sparked widespread debate, adding fuel to the ongoing political discourse in the state.

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Jairam Ramesh, the Indian National Congress’ General Secretary in charge of Communications, said the Union Finance Ministry might invite financial bids for NMDC Steel (NSL) in the state within the next two months. Expressing his concern over the issue, he called it a betrayal of the people.

He asked, “Kya Hua Tera Vaada”, implying that the privatization of the NMDC Steel in Bastar seems inevitable by the end of 2025.

In a video message shared on social media platform X, T.S. Singhdeo stated that the Nagarnar Steel Plant had been delinked from its parent body, NMDC, a move he believes paves the way for its potential privatization. Singhdeo condemned this as a breach of trust with the people of Bastar and Chhattisgarh.

Singhdeo criticized the Central government’s actions, calling it a significant betrayal of the people of Bastar. He noted that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had inaugurated the steel plant on October 3, 2023, with a promise that it would remain under local ownership. Union Home Minister Amit Shah had reaffirmed this commitment on October 19, 2023.

The process to demerge the Nagarnar Steel Plant from NMDC began in 2020, despite significant opposition. Now operating as an independent entity, speculation about its privatization has intensified.

The privatization issue has been contentious, particularly during the 2023 Assembly elections and the subsequent 2024 Lok Sabha polls. BJP leaders, both at the state and central levels, had assured the residents of Bastar and tribal communities that the plant would not be sold. Despite these assurances, the Central Cabinet has yet to revoke its initial proposal, which included the decision to privatize the plant.

There is a growing consensus in Chhattisgarh against the sale of the steel plant. Even former BJP Chief Minister Raman Singh had expressed his objections to the privatization in a letter to the Prime Minister in April 2017.

Former chief minister Bhupesh Baghel had also raised objections to the privatization of the plant, writing to the prime minister on several occasions. During a NITI Aayog meeting on February 21, 2021, Baghel even offered for the state government to take over the plant’s operations.

Singhdeo emphasized that the Nagarnar Steel Plant was established by NMDC with land acquired by the Chhattisgarh government under a semi-Central government scheme. He pointed out that previous attempts to privatize the plant had been met with strong resistance, viewing this as a direct violation of promises made to the people of Bastar.

When contacted, some officials from the Chhattisgarh government and the NMDC’s Nagarnar Steel Plant, speaking on condition of anonymity, expressed their opposition to the privatization process. As the situation develops, the potential privatization of the Nagarnar Steel Plant is likely to remain a flashpoint in Chhattisgarh’s political and public discourse.