New Delhi, Dec 17 : In Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, and Rajasthan, the leaders chosen as chief ministers after extensive deliberations has sent a clear message to the voters and opposition parties that the BJP has already begun preparations for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
In the three states, the BJP has not only addressed local politics by selecting chief ministers and two deputy chief ministers but has also made strategic moves to navigate caste equations and prepare for victory in the 2024 elections.
The three states — Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan — together have a total of 65 Lok Sabha seats.
By appointing an OBC CM in Madhya Pradesh, a tribal CM in Chhattisgarh, and a Brahmin CM in Rajasthan, the BJP has attempted to cut through the strategies of opposition parties.
The move is seen as an effort to counter the narrative around caste-based reservations and OBC reservations, raised by opposition leaders such as Rahul Gandhi, Akhilesh Yadav and Tejashwi Yadav, which was thought to potentially become a major electoral issue in the Lok Sabha elections.
Although Shivraj Singh Chouhan himself comes from the OBC community, but the BJP has strategically chosen Mohan Yadav, an OBC leader with the surname ‘Yadav’, as the CM of Madhya Pradesh to send a political message to Yadav voters in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.
By appointing an OBC leader as Madhya Pradesh CM, the BJP has delivered a significant blow to Akhilesh and Tejashwi, who were formulating strategies based on caste dynamics in their respective states to win the Lok Sabha elections.
Uttar Pradesh has 80 and Bihar has 40 Lok Sabha seats, making a total of 120 seats from these two states.
In Chhattisgarh, by appointing a tribal leader, Vishnudev Sai as the CM, the BJP not only navigated the electoral dynamics in the state but also made efforts to connect with the over 10 crore tribal population spread across various states in the country.
The significance of tribal voters can be gauged by the fact that out of the 543 Lok Sabha seats, 47 seats are reserved for Scheduled Tribes. Several states in the Northeast have a population where tribal communities constitute more than 75 per cent, making the tribal vote crucial not just in reserved seats but also in approximately 20 other seats.
Brahmins were traditionally considered a vote bank for the Congress until a few decades ago. However, as the Congress shifted its focus towards the Muslim community, especially during the Mandal politics era, Brahmins distanced themselves and aligned with the BJP.
In the current political scenario, the BJP, by choosing Brahmin leader Bhajanlal Sharma as the CM in Rajasthan, has attempted to send a strong political message to Brahmin voters across the country.
Apart from Rajasthan, Brahmin voters play a significant role in states like Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand, Himachal Pradesh and Delhi. Brahmin voters not only cast their own votes but also have the ability to influence votes of other communities due to their political influence.
In the 2014 and 2019 elections, along with the other upper castes, including Kshatriyas and Vaishyas, Brahmins played a significant role in Narendra Modi’s victory, and the BJP aims to consolidate their support again to form the government at the Centre for the third consecutive time in 2024.
Many analysts view the selection of new chief ministers in these three states as the end of the Atal-Advani era in the BJP. However, the party dismisses this interpretation, stating that such an analysis is not appropriate. The foundation laid by the two leaders continues to propel the party forward. Similar sentiments were expressed when leaders like Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Raman Singh and Vasundhara Raje Scindia became chief ministers for the first time in these states. Once again, the party has chosen grassroots workers to become chief ministers.
