NEW DELHI: Ten BJP MPs, who won assembly elections in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh, resigned from Parliament on Wednesday amid speculations that some of them may be in contention for chief minister’s posts in these states. The BJP is yet to announce chief minister picks for the three states amid reports that the party may go for a new line of leadership.
Five of these MPs are from Madhya Pradesh, where BJP won a landslide bagging 163 seats.They include – Former agriculture ministerNarendra Singh Tomar, minister of state for food processing industries of India Prahlad Singh Patel, Lok Sabha MPs Rakesh Singh, Uday Pratap and Riti Pathak. Lok Sabha members Arun Sao and Gomati Sai resigned after securing wins in Chhattisgarh and Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, Diya Kumari and Rajya Sabha MP Kirori Lal Meena have quit after securing wins in Rajasthan.
BJP president J P Nadda led the delegation of these MPs during the meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla and Rajya Sabha Chairman and Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankar. Sources said that the decision to resign as MPs was taken after a meeting with party president JP Nadda and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Their departure from the Centre has also sparked a fresh buzz on the possibility of PM Modi will inducting new members in his council of ministers ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
BJP’s ‘national’ strategy in states
The BJP, as a part of its electoral strategy, did not project any chief ministerial candidates in these states. In Madhya Pradesh, where the party has been ruling for almost 18 years now, there were fears of anti-incumbency. To counter that, the BJP leadership decided to field several MPs and fight the elections on PM Modi’s universal appeal among voters instead of banking on local leadership. Shivraj Singh Chouhan, who has already served four terms as chief minister of Madhya Pradesh, was not projected as party’s chief ministerial candidate. Chouhan’s “Ladli Behna” scheme many feel has contributed to the party’s huge victory in the state. However, the chief minister contenders in the state refuse to give credit to the scheme in party’s win and instead feel it was PM Modi’s popularity in the state that helped the party. Chouhan on his part has said that he is not a contender for the CM’s post and will carry out any responsibility given by the party.
In Rajasthan, former chief minister Vasundhara Raje was not projected as party’s chief ministerial candidate and may not be the natural choice for the top job. The BJP sent out a clear message to her as it involved several central leaders for party’s election campaign. Like in Madhya Pradesh, several MPs contested elections here also. Some of the MPs who quit today are strong contenders for the chief minister’s post in the state.
In Chhattisgarh also, the BJP fielded two MPs as part of its national strategy. Former chief minister Raman Singh remains the top contender for the chief minister’s post. However, with Lok Sabha elections months away, the BJP leadership may decide to use its chief ministerial choices to send a larger message about its social agenda. It won’t be a surprise if one of these leaders is picked up to lead the state government when the BJP finally announces its chief minister picks for the three states.
The BJP has never hesitated to change chief ministers in states ruled by the party. Uttarakhand, Karnataka, Gujarat saw change of guard in the run up to elections. In fact, Gujarat the home state of PM Modi and Amit Shah, has seen a lot of changes to the top post.
Five of these MPs are from Madhya Pradesh, where BJP won a landslide bagging 163 seats.They include – Former agriculture ministerNarendra Singh Tomar, minister of state for food processing industries of India Prahlad Singh Patel, Lok Sabha MPs Rakesh Singh, Uday Pratap and Riti Pathak. Lok Sabha members Arun Sao and Gomati Sai resigned after securing wins in Chhattisgarh and Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, Diya Kumari and Rajya Sabha MP Kirori Lal Meena have quit after securing wins in Rajasthan.
BJP president J P Nadda led the delegation of these MPs during the meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla and Rajya Sabha Chairman and Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankar. Sources said that the decision to resign as MPs was taken after a meeting with party president JP Nadda and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Their departure from the Centre has also sparked a fresh buzz on the possibility of PM Modi will inducting new members in his council of ministers ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
BJP’s ‘national’ strategy in states
The BJP, as a part of its electoral strategy, did not project any chief ministerial candidates in these states. In Madhya Pradesh, where the party has been ruling for almost 18 years now, there were fears of anti-incumbency. To counter that, the BJP leadership decided to field several MPs and fight the elections on PM Modi’s universal appeal among voters instead of banking on local leadership. Shivraj Singh Chouhan, who has already served four terms as chief minister of Madhya Pradesh, was not projected as party’s chief ministerial candidate. Chouhan’s “Ladli Behna” scheme many feel has contributed to the party’s huge victory in the state. However, the chief minister contenders in the state refuse to give credit to the scheme in party’s win and instead feel it was PM Modi’s popularity in the state that helped the party. Chouhan on his part has said that he is not a contender for the CM’s post and will carry out any responsibility given by the party.
In Rajasthan, former chief minister Vasundhara Raje was not projected as party’s chief ministerial candidate and may not be the natural choice for the top job. The BJP sent out a clear message to her as it involved several central leaders for party’s election campaign. Like in Madhya Pradesh, several MPs contested elections here also. Some of the MPs who quit today are strong contenders for the chief minister’s post in the state.
In Chhattisgarh also, the BJP fielded two MPs as part of its national strategy. Former chief minister Raman Singh remains the top contender for the chief minister’s post. However, with Lok Sabha elections months away, the BJP leadership may decide to use its chief ministerial choices to send a larger message about its social agenda. It won’t be a surprise if one of these leaders is picked up to lead the state government when the BJP finally announces its chief minister picks for the three states.
The BJP has never hesitated to change chief ministers in states ruled by the party. Uttarakhand, Karnataka, Gujarat saw change of guard in the run up to elections. In fact, Gujarat the home state of PM Modi and Amit Shah, has seen a lot of changes to the top post.