In a bombshell move, BJP decided to elect MP Higher Education Minister Mohan Yadav as the next Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister, replacing longtime CM Shivraj Chouhan, after the BJP scored a landslide victory in Madhya Pradesh by winning 166 seats.
Yadav is a member of Madhya Pradesh Legislative Assembly from the Ujjain Dakshin constituency and first became an MLA in 2013 from the same seat. He won the assembly elections in 2018 and 2023.
A cabinet minister in Shivraj Singh Chouhan’s government from 2020, Yadav’s influence within the state’s political landscape was further solidified by his appointment in the state government.
In the recent 2023 Madhya Pradesh Assembly election, Yadav successfully defended his seat in the Ujjain South constituency, winning by a margin of 12,941 votes against Congress candidate Chetan Premnarayan Yadav.
This victory marked his third consecutive term as an MLA and put him in the reckoning for the top job. Others in the fray were Prahlad Patel, former CM Chouhan, former Union minister and newly-elected Dimani MLA Narendra Tomar, Indore heavyweight Kailash Vijayvargiya, state unit chief VD Sharma and Union minister Jyotiraditya Scindia.
Ex-Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar, one of three former cabinet members to contest last month’s election, has been made Assembly Speaker.Tomar was widely speculated to succeed Chouhan to the top post.
Yadav was born on March 25, 1965 and his political career began with his first election as an MLA in 2013. He holds multiple degrees (BSC, LLB, MA, MBA and PhD).
His election is being widely seen as the end of the road for his long-serving predecessor, Shivraj Singh Chouhan in MP.
The BJP looking at quelling internal conflicts ahead of next year’s Lok Sabha election, has also named two deputy chief ministers – Jagdish Deora from the Rewa constituency and Rajesh Shukla, from the Mandsaur constituency.
The Ujjain South constituency, which is part of the Malwa North region and falls under the Ujjain Lok Sabha constituency, has been a stronghold for the BJP since 2003.
After being elected the CM-designate, Yadav said ‘I am a small worker of the party. I thank all of you, the state leadership and the central leadership. With your love and support, I will try to fulfil my responsibilities.’
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