‘Modeling’ himself on lines of Adityanath, is ‘moderate’ Shivraj sensing trouble to his position?

Vibha Sharma
Tribune News Service
New Delhi, January 7

Trying to “model” himself on the lines of BJP’s original “Hindutva poster boy, UP CM Yogi Adityanath”, is the “moderate” Madhya Pradesh CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan sensing trouble to his position from the central or the state leadership?

Those following his timeline, especially since he took over as the chief minister before the countrywide lockdown was imposed in March 2020, believe so.

The “perceptible change in behaviour” of “mild-mannered” Chouhan enjoying a “reasonable mass support from across” in the state is “surprising”, they say.

Whether it is the pressure from the Centre, or challenge from colleagues in top-heavy state leadership or instructions from the RSS for which the Madhya Pradesh is a ‘garh’ (home ground) the projection as a “new strong” leader is unmistakable.

After enacting a law against ‘love jihad’, he is now promising “a strict law with a provision of life imprisonment to keep a tight rein on the incidents of stone-pelting in the state”.

This after incidents of stone pelting at rallies, including by VHP, in Ujjain, Indore and Mandsaur to raise awareness about the Ram Temple construction in Ayodhya were reported.

In December, he sounded an ominous warning to mafia, asking them to leave the state or else he will “bury” them 10 feet deep in the ground and now, “I am in a dangerous mood nowadays. I will not spare those who are involved in illegal activities. Leave, Madhya Pradesh, otherwise, I will bury you 10 feet deep and no one will know about your whereabouts,” he said, which observers say is “just not his style”.

“The constant attempt by moderate Shivraj to mould as Yogi Adityanath is new,” they say.  

Unlike some other states, in MP the BJP is flush with talent like Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s blue-eyed boy Kailash Vijayvargia, state Home Minister Narottam Mishra, Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar and many more, including paratrooper from Congress Jyotiraditya Scindia.

Sources say “Shivraj managed to hold on to the post in March with great effort and has to make more efforts to remain there”.

“He managed to expand his Cabinet last Sunday with great effort,” they add.

Apparently, worried over key support base slipping away, for the next state elections the RSS has already entrusted the responsibility of coordination with the BJP to its four senior cadres.