BJP picks first-time MLA Bhajanlal Sharma as next Rajasthan CM, Vasundhara Raje proposed name

Aditi Tandon

New Delhi, December 13

The Bharatiya Janata Party on Tuesday pulled another surprise in the ongoing series across the Hindi heartland by picking an organisation man and first-time MLA from Sanganer in Jaipur, Bhajanlal Sharma as the chief minister of Rajasthan.

The BJP legislature party meeting held under the watch of central observer Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and two co-observers —national vice president Saroj Pandey and national general secretary Vinod Tawde —unanimously approved the name of Bhajanlal Sharma as the leader of the party MLAs in the desert state.

It is interesting that all three top posts in Rajasthan have gone to MLAs from Jaipur

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At the meeting, the CM-designate’s name was proposed by former chief minister Vasundhara Raje, who was herself considered to be in the running for the top post.

Bhajanlal Sharma is the party’s state unit general secretary and originally hails from Bharatpur.

The legislature party also picked Vidyadhar Nagar MLA Diya Kumari and MLA from Dudu in Jaipur Premchand Bairwa as deputy chief ministers.

MLA from Ajmer north Vasudev Devnani will be the Assembly Speaker candidate of the BJP.

Diya Kumari is the first woman leader to land a position in the top governance structure in any of the three cowbelt states — Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh — where the BJP recently swept to power, decimating the Congress.

It is interesting that all three top posts in Rajasthan have gone to MLAs from Jaipur.

Bhajanlal Sharma, MLA from Sanganer, Diya Kumari, MLA from Vidyadhar Nagar, and Premchand, Bairwa, MLA from Dudu are all from Jaipur Lok Sabha segment. — with PTI