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Ever since the assembly election results came out in Madhya Pradesh, a round of speculation has started across the state. Everyone seems to be busy in calculation with their own understanding as to who will become the Chief Minister and will their MLA be able to get a place in the cabinet?
In Bundelkhand, people seem to be more active in this matter and why not? There were three cabinet ministers from this region in the state government that completed their tenure.
Apart from this, two ministers-Prahlad Patel and virendra Khatik- in the central government were also from Bundelkhand. Not only that, there were more than one MLA who considered himself a contender for the post of minister after winning two to three consecutive times.
In the recent election results, they all have won again. Now questions are being raised that how many public representatives from Bundelkhand will be given berth in the new cabinet? Doesn't it seem possible to make everyone a minister?
So the dilemma of which new one will get a place and which old one will be shown the way out is giving sleepless nights to the politicians who claim to have a grip on the pulse of politics.
In the elections held for the 16th Assembly in Madhya Pradesh, BJP has won 163 out of total 230 seats. In this victory, out of total 26 seats in Bundelkhand region, BJP has won 21 seats as compared to 17 seats last time. This means that the number of people staking claim to the cabinet from Bundelkhand in the government has further increased.
If we talk about the contenders of Bundelkhand region, then Govind Singh Rajput, who won from Surkhi assembly constituency, was till now the minister of two important ministries, Revenue and Transport Department, in the BJP government and now, albeit with difficulty, he has again won and got a place in upcoming cabinet are hoping for.
Whereas Bhupendra Singh, who was the MLA from Khurai assembly constituency and is considered the most confidant of Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, was the Urban Development and Housing Minister and now after winning again, he remains a strong contender for the post of minister. Not only this, whenever there was a talk of change of leadership in the state, he also came into discussion as a contender for the post of Chief Minister.
Similarly, Gopal Bhargava, who has been winning from Rehli assembly constituency for eight times, has been continuously holding the post of minister in one department or the other. Now after winning for the ninth time, he is standing in the front row among the contenders for the post of minister.
Prahlad Patel, who was Minister of State in the Central Government after winning from Damoh parliamentary constituency, has now won from Narsinghpur assembly constituency this time and there are strong discussions about him being given the responsibility of the post of Chief Minister or Deputy Chief Minister.
If the issue of old age does not come in the way, then Jayant Malaiya, who won the election from Damoh, is also considered a strong deserve to get a place in the cabinet.
Harishankar Khatik has also won the elections for the third time from Jatara seat of Tikamgarh district, while Congress has won on the other two seats of the district despite the huge victory of BJP in the state. In such a situation, the party can consider giving benefits to Khatik also.
Other backward class woman leader Lalita Yadav, who defeated senior Congress leader Alok Chaturvedi (Pajjan Bhaiya) from Chhatarpur Assembly seat, is also said to be a contender for an important post in the new government.
Brijendra Pratap Singh, who has won the election from Panna assembly constituency for the second consecutive time, has also won from Pawai assembly constituency twice before. He has also been a minister in the BJP government. Their claims are being said to be no less than anyone else's.
Similar claim is being made by Anil Jain, who has won from Niwari assembly constituency three times in a row.
Sagar and Narayawali assembly MLAs Shailendra Jain and Pradeep Laria are also said to be strong contenders for getting a place in the cabinet after winning for the fourth consecutive time.
In the new BJP government in Madhya Pradesh, contenders from almost all the areas of the state are trying their best to get a place in the cabinet. But various drafts are also being discussed regarding what will be the form of cabinet and government in the state and what are the factors working in giving shape to that form.
A section of politicians is claiming that the BJP high command will form the cabinet through social engineering in an effort to woo all sections of the society in view of the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.
Due to this, some old senior ministers may also have to be deprived of ministerial posts in the new BJP government and MLAs like Pradeep Laria,lalita yadav and Harishankar Khatik may also get a chance in the effort to solve caste equations.
But since the beginning of discussions about reshuffle in BJP months before the assembly elections, political commentators have been expressing apprehensions about Gujarat formula being implemented in the state.
Now once again discussions are being started about the formation of a new cabinet. Formulas have started jumping. He believes that this formula will decide the form of the new cabinet in the state and if this happens then no old face will be seen in the cabinet.
However, it will not take much time for the face of the Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh and the form of the cabinet to be revealed.
But still, the fierce battle going on in the state between the political stalwarts and those interested in speculation to establish themselves as political experts by throwing new tricks is likely not to stop before the formation of the cabinet finaly come up.
