Bhupesh Baghel (born 23 August 1961) is an Indian politician of the Indian National Congress who was the third Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh, from December 2018 to December 2023. A farmer’s son from the Durg district, he rebuilt his party in the state after its leadership was killed in a Maoist ambush, and led it to a sweeping victory in 2018. His government was known for schemes aimed at farmers and the village economy.
Quick Facts
| Full name | Bhupesh Baghel |
| Born | 23 August 1961, Durg district, Chhattisgarh |
| Age | 65 |
| State | Chhattisgarh |
| Party | Indian National Congress |
| Offices | Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh (2018–2023); President, Chhattisgarh Pradesh Congress Committee (2014–2019); minister in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh |
| Constituency | Patan |
| Spouse | Mukteshwari Baghel |
| Children | 4 |
Early Life
He was born into a farming family of the Kurmi community, counted among the Other Backward Classes, in the Durg district of what was then Madhya Pradesh. He grew up working on the land and has kept the manner and speech of a Chhattisgarhi farmer.
Career
Rise
He joined the Youth Congress in the mid-1980s and was elected to the Madhya Pradesh assembly from Patan in 1993. He served as a minister in the government of Digvijaya Singh. When Chhattisgarh became a separate state in November 2000 he became a minister in its first government, under Ajit Jogi.
The Congress lost the state in 2003 and remained out of power for fifteen years.
Rebuilding the party
On 25 May 2013 Maoists ambushed a Congress convoy in the Jhiram valley of Bastar and killed nearly the whole of the party’s state leadership. In 2014 Baghel was made president of the state unit. He spent four years on the road, leading marches over farmers’ prices, land and alleged scandals, and took on both the government and rivals within his own party.
Chief Minister
In the election of 2018 the Congress won 68 of the 90 seats. He was sworn in on 17 December.
- **Paddy:** farmers were paid well above the national support price for their rice, through the Rajiv Gandhi Kisan Nyay Yojana, and farm loans were waived
- **Godhan Nyay Yojana:** the government bought cow dung from villagers at a fixed price and turned it into compost, a scheme that attracted national attention
- **Village programme:** the revival of streams, cattle shelters, compost pits and kitchen gardens under the slogan “Narva, Garva, Ghurva, Bari”
- **Schools:** English-medium government schools named after Swami Atmanand
- **Identity:** he promoted Chhattisgarhi festivals, food and games, and presented himself as a son of the soil
Defeat
Against most forecasts, the Bharatiya Janata Party won the election of December 2023, and Vishnu Deo Sai became Chief Minister. Baghel kept his own seat. He lost the Lok Sabha election of 2024 from Rajnandgaon.
Since 2023
He was appointed a general secretary of the All India Congress Committee in 2025, in charge of the party’s affairs in Punjab.
Investigations
Central agencies have investigated alleged irregularities during his government, including in the liquor trade, coal transport and an online betting application. His son was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in July 2025 in the liquor case. Baghel has denied all the allegations and calls them an attempt to silence the opposition.
Personal Life
He is married to Mukteshwari Baghel; they have a son and three daughters. He is known for taking part in village festivals, for his skill with the traditional spinning top and for an early-morning routine of yoga.
Featured image: Bhupesh Baghel, former Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh. Photo by Domino786, licensed under CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.
