Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan claimed that his party BJP “will score the biggest ever success in state assembly polls this time”. However, on the question of who will become the next CM, Chouhan said, it is the party leadership which will decide.
Replying to questions from India TV anchor at Chunav Manch daylong conclave in Bhopal, Chouhan said: “I will not speculate on numbers (of seats), but this election will witness our biggest ever success. Those sitting in Delhi and Bhopal cannot gauge the amount of affection that voters are showing to us. I am fully confident that BJP will score its biggest success this time….BJP hi is baar sarkar banayegi, yeh atal satya hai. (BJP will form the government, this is the only truth).”
Pressed on who will become the chief minister, Chouhan said, “we are all part of a bigger mission to make India great and prosperous. Our party will decide who will be given which post…The question is not about post, but about who is given what responsibility. While pursing the bigger aim of making India great, we do not see which post we get. Can we become selfish? Should we think only about ourself? We think about our society, our nation. Our mission (leadership) decides who will do what.”
Chouhan went on: ” Whatever work party will give, we will do. We are not self-centered. We are part of a bigger mission.”
Chouhan said, already Congress leaders in MP have become worried after top BJP stalwarts were fielded as candidates in assembly elections. “They are worried. Earlier, they were confident of winning those seats, from where we have now fielded our top leaders…We are disciplined workers of our party.”
On a lighter note, the chief minister said, he was happy to work with his old friends in the party, who had been sent to Delhi and other places. “Main aanandit hoon (I am happy). My old team is back. When I was the state chief of BJP Yuva Morcha, Narendra Singh Tomar was my vice-president, Prahlad Patel was my general secretary and Kailash Vijayvargiya was my secretary. We are all so happy. We are holding frequent meetings and preparing strategies and plans. It is a unique relationship of brotherly affection and closeness. The entire team is close knit and working as a collective leadership.”