A LEASE RENEWAL AT CM'S OFFICE

Ambitious rivals crowd the Jaipur palace, but BJP is inclined to favour Sharma's continuation

- By Rohit Parihar

THERE WAS A PIECE OF PUBLIC performance, there were private conversationsand plenty of whispers off-stage. Happily for CM Bhajan Lal Sharma, the important facts all seem in virtuous alignment. When BJP president J.P. Nadda chose Jaipur to mark the 300th birth anniversary of Ahilyabai Holkar, it wasn't just about honouring a Maratha queen. Sharma, 18 months young in his tenure, had never managed to get himself off the receiving end of pointed social media gossip. Credible or not, the buzz about a change of guard was always in the air, like a beast with a life of its own.