As the BJP continued to build suspense around its choice of chief ministers for the three heartland states of Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan, CP Joshi, the party’s chief for the desert state, on Thursday said the final call in the matter will be taken by the Parliamentary Board.
Led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Parliamentary Board is the highest decision-making body within the BJP.
Speaking to ANI on a visit to the national capital on Thursday, the BJP’s Rajasthan president and Lok Sabha MP said, “A whip has been issued as a very important Bill is to be tabled tomorrow. I have come to participate in the proceedings of the Lok Sabha. That (CM faces for Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan) has to be decided by our Parliamentary Board. Everything else will happen thereafter.”
As the BJP navigates its internal deliberations on the chief ministerial candidate for Rajasthan, several prominent names are emerging as potential contenders for the post.
Vasundhara Raje, a two-time chief minister; Diya Kumari, who has been elected MLA from Vidyadhar Nagar; Mahat Balak Nath, who emerged victorious from the Tijara constituency; and Rajyavarardhan Singh Rathore, triumphant from the Jhotwara constituency, are being seen as the top contenders.
Meanwhile, even as feverish speculations over the BJP’s CM picks continued, former Rajasthan chief minister and stalwart BJP leader Vasundhara Raje, on Thursday, called on Nadda at the latter’s residence in the national capital.
The BJP swept the Hindi heartland on the counting day for four states that polled for their assemblies last month.
With its stunning mandates in Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan, the BJP stumped not just their rivals but also some pollsters who had predicted tight races in these states.
In Rajasthan, the vote count painted a starkly different picture from what some of the pollsters had predicted, with the BJP poised to form the government, winning 115 seats, and the Congress trailing at 69 seats.