BJP’s loud message in Madhya Pradesh: Shivraj may not be CM again
PM Narendra Modi in a Bhopal rally on Monday
By Manish Anand
New Delhi, September 25: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday released party’s second list of candidates for the Assembly elections in Madhya Pradesh. The saffron outfit has fielded several Lok Sabha MPs in the fray in a departure from the norms to revive the leadership debate in Madhya Pradesh.
Union Minister and the campaign committee chief of the BJP in Madhya Pradesh Narendra Singh Tomar has entered the electoral fray. The BJP has fielded Tomar from the Dimani Assembly seat.
Madhya Pradesh’s longest serving Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has been facing intense speculation about his future in the state for a long time. The BJP by fielding at least two potential CM candidates in the second list of the candidates appears to have sent out a loud message that the saffron outfit could be looking for an alternative in the event the party retains power in the state.
Tomar is seen to be a potential rival of Chouhan. Besides, Kailash Vijayvargia, who has been CM aspiration for several years, has also been fielded from Indore-1 Assembly constituency. Vijayvargia is the national general secretary of the BJP, while he’s considered to be close to Union Minister for Home Affairs Amit Shah.
With Tomar and Vijayvargiya in the electoral fray, the BJP appears to have given a message to the electorate in Madhya Pradesh that the saffron outfit is open for leadership change in the state. Also, the BJP has fielded Faggan Singh Kulaste, as well as Pralhad Singh Patel, both Lok Sabha MPs. They are also seen in the reckoning for the post of the chief minister in the event the saffron outfit wins the poll.
The BJP has given Assembly tickets to seven Lok Sabha MPs, which also include Riti Pathak and Ganesh Singh. By fielding seven Lok Sabha MPs already in the electoral fray, the BJP has also sounded that the party will have an all hands on the deck approach for the Madhya Pradesh Assembly elections.
Incidentally, the BJP has not yet announced the Assembly seat of the incumbent chief minister, who is the lead campaigner in the state for the party, while Prime Minister Narendra Modi is spending more time in the state now. The second list of the candidates of the BJP covers 39 Assembly seats.
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