Now Indore district in-charge, MP CM Mohan Yadav tightens grip on power in state BJP

Powerful ministers like Kailash Vijayvargiya and Prahlad Patel get charge of comparatively less prominent districts

The CM’s home district of Ujjain has now come under the purview of Gautam Tetwal, a minister of state. (File)

With the BJP government in Madhya Pradesh appointing new district in-charges from the state Cabinet, Chief Minister Mohan Yadav signalled his increasing grip on the power equations in the state after he was deputed as in-charge of the economic powerhouse of Indore, leaving powerful ministers like Kailash Vijayvargiya and Prahlad Patel with less prominent districts.

On Monday, following an order passed by the state General Administration Department, the government announced the new district in-charges – of the 31 ministers in the Cabinet, seven were assigned one district each and 23 were assigned two districts each, with the CM taking charge of Indore.

District in-charges occupy powerful positions with senior police officers and district collectors answerable to them. Among the responsibilities of a district in-charge are managing the development of the area and presiding over administrative meetings with MLAs and MPs. The BJP government had been brainstorming the appointments for months.

Union minister Jyotiraditya Scindia’s loyalists, however, managed to retain his key strongholds. Tulsiram Silawat, the Water Resources Minister, was assigned the Gwalior and Burhanpur districts. Pradhuman Singh Tomar, the Energy Minister, got Shivpuri and Pandhurna, while Govind Singh Rajput, the Minister of Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Protection, got Guna and Narsinghpur.

Party insiders said that by keeping Vijayvargiya and Patel from important districts, “the CM had signalled he was taking a prominent role in the administration and the party, and had kept other contenders at arm’s length”. However, some leaders said Vijayvargiya and Patel had in the past been deputed to more prominent districts and that “one should not read too much into” the latest appointments.

“In the past, Vijayvargiya was given the responsibility of tribal districts due to his acumen in expanding the party footprint. One must not read too much into this list. Vijayvargiya and Patel are very important ministers in the ruling party and have been given important portfolios,” an insider said.

Vijayvargiya, an Indore native and former mayor from 2000 to 2005, was appointed the in-charge for Satna and Dhar. Patel, a prominent OBC leader and a contender for the CM’s post after the polls last year, was given Bhind and Rewa. Though insiders had expected the Chhindwara district, the bastion of Congress heavyweight Kamal Nath, to be given to Patel, it was instead assigned to Rakesh Singh, a former state party chief.

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The two deputy CMs were assigned two districts each – Jagdish Devda got Jabalpur and Dewas, and Rajendra Shukla got Sagar and Shahdol.

During Chouhan’s tenure, important districts were given to prominent ministers including Gopal Bhargava, Bhupendra Singh, Narottam Mishra, Brijendra Pratap and Jagdish Devda, while the former CM himself did not assume responsibility of any district.

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The CM’s home district of Ujjain has now come under the purview of Gautam Tetwal, a minister of state. Under Chouhan, Ujjain, the cultural capital of Madhya Pradesh, was overseen by Devda, who also served as the finance minister in the previous government. Likewise, Indore was managed by Narottam Mishra, the second most influential minister under Chouhan.

Ever since Yadav was selected to replace Chouhan as CM, he has met the challenge of filling the popular former CM’s shoes head on. Yadav has been at the forefront of administrative decision-making in the state government, including in the transfer of IAS and IPS officers.

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The BJP so far has put up a united front despite murmurs of discontent over Congress turncoat Ramnivas Rawat being inducted into the Cabinet. However, with the RSS backing Yadav, he currently occupies a comfortable space in state politics.

Anand Mohan J

Anand Mohan J is an award-winning Senior Correspondent for The Indian Express, currently leading the bureau’s coverage of Madhya Pradesh. With a career spanning over eight years, he has established himself as a trusted voice at the intersection of law, internal security, and public policy. Based in Bhopal, Anand is widely recognized for his authoritative reporting on Maoist insurgency in Central India. In late 2025, he provided exclusive, ground-level coverage of the historic surrender of the final Maoist cadres in Madhya Pradesh, detailing the backchannel negotiations and the "vacuum of command" that led to the state being declared Maoist-free. Expertise and Reporting Beats Anand’s investigative work is characterized by a "Journalism of Courage" approach, holding institutions accountable through deep-dive analysis of several key sectors: National Security & Counter-Insurgency: He is a primary chronicler of the decline of Naxalism in the Central Indian corridor, documenting the tactical shifts of security forces and the rehabilitation of surrendered cadres. Judiciary & Legal Accountability: Drawing on over four years of experience covering Delhi’s trial courts and the Madhya Pradesh High Court, Anand deconstructs complex legal rulings. He has exposed critical institutional lapses, including custodial safety violations and the misuse of the National Security Act (NSA). Wildlife Conservation (Project Cheetah): Anand is a leading reporter on Project Cheetah at Kuno National Park. He has provided extensive coverage of the biological and administrative hurdles of rewilding Namibian and South African cheetahs, as well as high-profile cases of wildlife trafficking. Public Health & Social Safety: His recent investigative work has uncovered systemic negligence in public services, such as contaminated blood transfusions causing HIV infections in thalassemia patients and the human cost of the fertilizer crisis affecting rural farmers. Professional Background Tenure: Joined The Indian Express in 2017. Locations: Transitioned from the high-pressure Delhi City beat (covering courts, police, and labor issues) to his current role as a regional lead in Madhya Pradesh. Notable Investigations: * Exposed the "digital arrest" scams targeting entrepreneurs. Investigated the Bandhavgarh elephant deaths and the impact of kodo millet fungus on local wildlife. Documented the transition of power and welfare schemes (like Ladli Behna) in Madhya Pradesh governance. Digital & Professional Presence Author Profile: Anand Mohan J at Indian Express Twitter handle: @mohanreports ... Read More