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Parleys, shows of strength in focus before BJP picks CMs
People familiar with the matter in the BJP said that the party would go for a generational shift in at least one of the three states, and perhaps all three
BHOPAL/JAIPUR/NEW DELHI/RAIPUR Thursday brought little clarity on the identity of the new chief ministers of Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Chhattisgarh, although there were hectic behind-the-scenes parleys within the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), and quiet shows of strength by aspirants to the posts.
With all 12 lawmakers -- 11 from the Lok Sabha and one from the Rajya Sabha -- resigning (10 resigned on Wednesday and two on Thursday) from their respective House and three of them who are ministers also resigning from the council of ministers, suspense over the new chief ministers of the three states continued to mount.
People familiar with the matter in the BJP said that the party would go for a generational shift in at least one of the three states, and perhaps all three. One of them added on condition of anonymity that the party could opt for a woman or a tribal in Chhattisgarh. Interestingly, Renuka Singh, a woman and a tribal, resigned as MP and minister on Thursday.
But a second person said that this did not mean she was being named chief minister, only that she was among the candidates.
Indeed, if anything, Thursday only saw more names doing the rounds. In the case of Chhattisgarh, apart from Singh, this includes Arun Sao, the state BJP chief who is among the lawmakers who resigned on Wednesday, and OP Chaudhary and Ram Vichar Netam. While the first person said former chief minister of the state Raman Singh was not a candidate, the second person said he could not be ruled out.
In Rajasthan, the names doing the rounds include those of former chief minister Vasundhara Raje, who met party president J P Nadda on Thursday; three MPs who have resigned, Baba Balaknath (who met party president JP Nadda on Thursday), Diya Kumari, and Kirodi Lal Meena. Even the names of Union ministers Arjun Ram Meghwal and Ashwini Vaishnaw, both from Rajasthan, have come up.
And in Madhya Pradesh, apart from incumbent Shivraj Singh Chouhan, who is yet to make the trip to Delhi, the list includes former agriculture minister Narender Singh Tomar and former culture minister Prahlad Patel, the two MPs who contested the assembly elections and won. Union civil aviation minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, too, is a popular leader from the state who delivered the key Gwalior-Chambal region to the party though he did not contest the assembly polls.
A third BJP leader suggested that a decision would be taken by the weekend. Observers will be appointed shortly, this person, a senior BJP functionary in Delhi, added, and “as is the practice" they will travel to the states to meet the MLAs and take a call on the chief minister.
“Shivraj Singh Chouhan and Raje have both been CM and are still contenders for the post; but there is a sense in the party that the time to pass the baton has arrived...the party has a comfortable mandate all the states and there is no scope for rebellion or dissent,” said the first leader.
Both Raje and Chouhan have stated that they will stand by the party’s decision even as the former’s meetings with a bunch of legislators has caused some concern in New Delhi where it is being seen as a show of strength.
People close to Renuka Singh said that on Thursday after the parliament session she was called for a meeting with party president JP Nadda.
Singh is from a Scheduled Tribe community and is believed to enjoy significant popularity, especially among women.Sao, a first time MP from Bilaspur was appointed as the state party chief in August 2022 in a bid to consolidate the OBC vote .
In Madhya Pradesh, Chouhan addressed a workers’ meeting in Sehore district on Thursday, where the party lost both the assembly seats in the district. He called upon the party workers to ensure that the party wins all the Lok Sabha seats from Madhya Pradesh. In 2019, the BJP won 28 of the 29 seats.
Chouhan on Wednesday had visited state Congress president Kamal Nath’s home district of Chhindwara, from where the BJP had failed to win even a single seat.
A BJP leader in Bhopal said that so far none of the state leaders have been called for meeting in Delhi. “We only hear that Narender Singh ji and Prahlad ji met senior party leaders in New Delhi. We are waiting for signal from the party high command to prepare for the legislative party meeting. Till then, all MLAs have been asked to be with people in their respective constituencies.”
