Chhattisgarh Chief Minister-designate Vishnu Deo Sai meets the Governor Biswabhusan Harichandan to stake claim in forming the government, at Raj Bhavan on December 10, 2023.
| Photo Credit: ANI
The BJP on December 10 chose Vishnu Deo Sai, a party veteran and former Union Minister, as the next Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh. He will be the central Indian State’s fourth Chief Minister, and the first tribal to hold the post. He is also the first to hail from a region beyond the Other Backward Class-dominated central plains in Chhattisgarh’s 23-year-old history.
The MLA from Kunkuri, a reserved constituency in the hilly northern tribal belt of Sarguja from where the BJP won all 14 seats in the recent election, was unanimously chosen as the BJP’s Legislature Party leader at a meeting held in the party headquarters at Raipur.
He later met Chhattisgarh Governor Biswabhusan Harichandan as the CM-designate and handed the letter appointing him as the new Chief Minister. The swearing-in ceremony is likely to be held later this week.
In his first interaction with the media, Mr. Sai said his priority would be to fulfil poll promises made as part of the party’s “Modi ki Guarantee” announcements. Among others, he said 18 lakh homes would be built for the poor.
BJP leaders congratulate the tribal leader Vishnu Deo Sai after being elected as the legislature party leader, in Raipur on December 10, 2023
| Photo Credit:
ANI
“I thank all the MLAs who have shown faith in me. I will work with complete honesty and try to live up to the expectations of everyone. As the Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh, I shall fulfil ‘Modi’s guarantees’ given to the people by our party. In the last five years, 18 lakh people did not benefit from Awas Yojna [housing scheme] and my top priority will be to ensure all of them get it. All those who are corrupt will be punished. We won all the 14 Surguja seats because of Congress’s failure and Modi guarantees. Modi ji’s presence [campaigning] made a huge difference.”
Two deputy CMs
While the appointment of Mr. Sai concludes a week dominated by speculations around the chief ministerial face of the BJP, the party also announced that there would be two Deputy Chief Ministers in the Cabinet while three-time former Chief Minister Raman Singh would be the Assembly speaker.
Also Read: The BJP’s strong voter base in Chhattisgarh
On him being chosen as Vidhan Sabha speaker, Dr Singh said, “National president [J P Nadda] has talked about it. I will discharge whatever responsibility is given to me” while also confirming that two deputy CM posts have been decided.
There are speculations over BJP’s current State president Arun Sao, a prominent OBC leader who was also said to be in the race for the CM post, and Vijay Sharma, a first-time MLA from Kawardha who defeated Congress veteran and the only Muslim minister in the previous government, Mohammmad Akbarbeing the two names shortlisted for the deputy CMs’ post(s).
Earlier, Mr. Sai’s name was proposed by former CM Dr. Singh and was supported by Mr. Sao, and former minister and senior MLA, Brijmohan Agrawal. In the State’s political circles, the new CM is considered close to Dr. Singh.
Shortly after Mr. Sai’s name was announced, BJP workers gathered at Kushabhau Thakre Parisar – the party’s State headquarters in Raipur where the legislative party meeting was held – raised slogans hailing Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and the late Jashpur royal family scion Dilip Singh Judeo, besides the newly appointed leader. Mr. Judeo was a prominent BJP leader from the Sarguja belt known for his anti-religious conversion movement in the region. Shouts of Aadivasi Raj Karhi [Chhattisgarhi for tribals will rule] also filled the air inside the Kushabhau Thakre Parisar.
As party MLAs, some of them said to be contenders for the coveted post themselves, emerged from the meeting after it concluded, they expressed support for the new Chief Minister.
Former Union minister Renuka Singh, another tribal leader from the Sarguja belt, whose name was also in the mix, said she was happy that this is the first time a party worker from the tribal community had been elected as the CM. While Mr. Sai hails from the Kanwar tribe, a high-level caste scrutiny committee set up by the previous Congress government (2018-2023) had in 2019 dismissed former CM [the late] Ajit Jogi’s claim of belonging to a Scheduled Tribe (ST) and cancelled his caste certificates.
“I will do whatever the party organisation instructs me to do,” Ms. Singh said when asked about her role in the new government.