Shivraj Chouhan Laments Having Ended up in “Exile” while Waiting for “Coronation”
NEW DELHI, Jan 3: The former Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, who led his BJP to landslide victory in the just-concluded elections to the state Assembly but was ignored by the party high command for a fifth term as the chief minister, on Wednesday lamented that sometimes one ends up in “vanvas” (exile) while waiting for “rajtilak” (coronation).
After the BJP’s landslide victory, the party chose Mohan Yadav, a three-time MLA from Ujjain South who had served as the education minister in Chouhan’s government, as the chief minister, replacing Shivraj Chouhan who served as the state’s CM for four times.
Chouhan, while addressing a gathering in Shahganj town under his Budhni assembly seat got emotional and said he would continue to be among the people, especially his “sisters.” “I will not go anywhere. I will live here and die here,” Mr Chouhan said when a couple of women sitting in the audience shouted “bhaiyya (brother), don’t go anywhere leaving us alone.”
The former chief minister said all the works started by the previous BJP government, including the Ladli Behna Yojana (for women’s welfare), housing scheme for beneficiaries of the Ladli Behna scheme, a scheme of one job in each family and promises made to farmers, would be fulfilled by the present government.
“The new government will take forward all these works. There must be some big objective somewhere, sometimes by the time ‘rajtilak’ takes place, one even ends up in ‘vanvas’ (exile). But all this happens to fulfil some or the other objective,” Mr Chouhan told the gathering.
He said the present ruling dispensation would implement all these schemes as there was the BJP’s government in the state and not of the Congress. The former chief minister also noted that children who were among the audience had come to show their love for “mama” (maternal uncle – as Mr Chouhan is popularly referred).
Earlier, a large number of BJP workers and women welcomed Mr Chouhan on his arrival in Shahganj. Mr Chouhan won the election from Budhni assembly seat by a margin of more than 1.04 lakh votes over his Congress rival Vikram Mastal.
In the November 2023 state elections, the BJP bagged 163 of the 230 assembly seats, posting a resounding victory and retaining power in the central state. The opposition Congress was relegated to a distant second spot with victory in 66 assembly segments, while one seat was won by the Bharat Adivasi Party.
Chouhan named his house, a government bungalow in Bhopal, as “Mama Ka Ghar” and said its doors were open for everyone. His government accommodation is located off Link Road No. 1 in the posh 74 Bungalows locality in the state capital where he moved after vacating the CM’s house.
(Manas Dasgupta)
