BJP's second list in MP springs surprises

Union Minister Prahlad Singh Patel will contest from Narsinghpur, Union Minister Faggan Sing Kulaste will fight from Niwas.

- RAHUL CHHABRA

Is the Shivraj Singh Chouhan era in Madhya Pradesh nearing its end? The inclusion of three Union ministers and four MPs in BJP's second list of 39 candidates for the Madhya Pradesh Assembly elections has signalled that leaders as tall as Chief Minister Chouhan may be in the running for the top post if the saffron party manages to win the election.

Sources confirmed that the party's "cold shoulder" to Chouhan carries a twin blow for the veteran who, allegedly, was not informed about the naming of the Union Ministers in the second list.

Questions are rising if Chouhan's exclusion signifies his diminishing standing in the party which has decided not to project him as the front-runner for the chief ministerial post. Prime Minister Narendra Modi refrained from naming him even once during his Bhopal rally on Monday, the day the second list of candidates was announced.

The central leadership has been wary of the infighting in the state unit and Chouhan appears to be paying a price for not addressing the issue in the run-up to the November-December elections for the 230-member Assembly, a party source said, adding that there was a possibility that the Chief Minister may announce that he will not contest the Assembly elections.