With the Central Observers - Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, OBC Morcha head K Laxman and secretary Asha Lakra - set to arrive at Bhopal on Monday to convene the legislative party meeting, the wait for the state's next chief minister is almost over.
The meeting of the newly-elected MLAs in Madhya Pradesh will begin at 4 pm and the chief minister will be announced by 7 pm, an MLA told PTI.
The observers are expected to arrive here at 11 am. "We have been invited for lunch at 1 pm. The meeting will begin at 4 pm," the MLA said.
The Bharatiya Janata Party retained power in the state in the November 17 polls winning 163 seats in the 230-member Assembly, leaving the Congress a distant second with 66 seats. However, it did not project a CM face, with the campaign relying heavily on the mass appeal of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Prominent names doing rounds for the top post include Prahlad Patel, former Union minister and newly-elected Dimani MLA Narendra Tomar, Indore heavyweight Kailash Vijayvargiya and Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia.
There are chances that the government may opt for an OBC face, considering all three CMs of the BJP in MP since 2003, namely Uma Bharti, Babulal Gaur and Chouhan, have been from this category. The population of OBCs in MP is around 48 per cent.
Patel, Tomar, Vijayvargiya, Sharma and Scindia have already met Union Home Minister and BJP's key strategist Amit Shah in New Delhi. They also called on party president J P Nadda.
Two other names too have found themselves in the list. They include two Brahmin leaders: state party chief and first-time MP VD Sharma, and fifth-time MLA and a minister in the outgoing state cabinet, Rajendra Shukla, both of whom hail from the Vindhya region.
Incidentally, many believe Chouhan, a four-time CM having taken oath in 2005, 2008, 2013 and 2020, is likely to be selected once again, at least till the Lok Sabha elections. The chief minister also sent a cryptic message on Saturday, posting "Sabhi ko Ram Ram (`Ram Ram' to all)" on X. The post, accompanied by Chouhan's picture with his palms brought together, sparked off speculation as "Ram Ram" is used both as a greeting as well as a parting message.
