Poor Shivraj! His rallies, schemes, reach-out programmes did not pay off

New Delhi: Madhya Pradesh has been under the BJP’s rule for the past 15 years now – and under the leadership of outgoing Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, the party seemed invincible. However, the results of the Assembly elections in the crucial state failed to create a positive narrative for the BJP.

Chouhan’s popularity drove the several campaigns and schemes that he tried to implement in the state. Chouhan led the Madhya Pradesh campaign from the front even though PM Modi did address some rallies in the state.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP chief Amit Shah banked on Chouhan’s traction in the state to draw votes ahead of the Assembly polls. PM Modi addressed around 30 rallies and Shah participated in over 170 public events ahead of the Assembly elections.

However, they were still unable to beat the anti-incumbency. Chouhan also suffered losses due to his inability to stem rebellion and dissidence in the BJP after ticket distribution.

Under Chouhan, Madhya Pradesh saw an increase in economic growth rate, as well as agricultural GDP. Being primarily an agrarian state, Madhya Pradesh saw the state’s emphasis on enhancing irrigation facilities for farmers.

The Bhavantar Bhutan Yojana was introduced to plug loopholes in the public distribution system and provide reasonable prices for farmers to sell their crops.

MP became a power-surplus state, witnessing a growth of 64% in power supply since 2011.

Ladli Lakshmi Yojana was an initiative by the Madhya Pradesh state government to stress on the improvement of women’s health and education, along with developing positive attitudes towards women in general.

To seek votes from women, Chouhan had earlier in August reached out to more than 5 lakh women through a mass public outreach – SMS, WhatsApp and phone calls – seeking their blessings on Rakshabandhan and seeking their votes.

These were only a few of the many developmental schemes that the Shivraj Chouhan government tried to implement in the state. Chouhan left no stone unturned campaigning ahead of the Assembly polls in the state, attending several rallies and public meetings.  

However, the man wasn’t without his faults. Chouhan faced a backlash from certain controversial comments –  like the ‘Koi bhi mai ka laal aarakshan khatam nahi kar sakta’ comment which is said to have angered the upper castes and the OBCs, which have been a traditional vote bank of the BJP in past elections.

Despite everything, a “BIMARU” Madhya Pradesh did start its journey on the path of development under Chouhan.

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