Chouhan's MP era ends after nearly two decades

In the days after December 3, when the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) bested 18 years of anti-incumbency towin 163 seats in Madhya Pradesh, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan did not stop touring the state. Publicly, he said that he was not a claimant for the top post and that there was no post greater than “brother” or “uncle” to the people of the state.

- Shruti Tomar [e-mail]

Yet, he continued travelling. There was an “aabhaar karyakram”(gratitude programme) in Bhopal; rallies in Raghogarh and Sheopur; and days spent in Chhindwara, the Kamal Nath bastion. Chouhan was focussed on his next goal, he said everywhere: “Mission 29”, or themission to win all 29 seats in the 2024 elections. Yet, when the BJP legislators met on December 11, it became clear that Chouhan, among Madhya Pradesh’s tallest political leaders over the past two decades, would not be the man to lead that mission.

After the BJP legislative meeting, held in the presence of central observers led by Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar, Chouhanmet governor Mangubhai Patel to tender his resignation and brought down the curtain on almost 18 years in power.