‘Where am I going?’ Shivraj Singh Chouhan bids farewell, sort of

His hand on the heads of two sobbing Ladli Behna beneficiaries on either side of him, Chouhan – replaced as CM after four terms in the post, by the unforeseen Ujjain (South) MLA Mohan Yadav – assured he wasn’t going anywhere.

One of the women, among the group gathered at the CM House to meet Chouhan, said: “Hum aapko nahin chhodenge (We will not leave you).” The senior BJP leader, whose future role in the party remains uncertain, replied: “Mein bhi kahan ja raha hoon. Mein bhi nahin chhodunga (Where am I going? I won’t leave either).”

The woman made another appeal: “Aapne kitni mehnat kari. Behenon ne aapko chuna hai, aapko vote diya tha bhaiya (You worked so hard. The sisters chose you, voted for you, brother).”

The hall packed with journalists where Chouhan delivered his farewell speech was dominated by a large LED screen, playing on loop highlights from his marathon campaign trail, and endless pictures of the ex-CM surrounded by women and children, showering him with petals.

Chouhan was asked about his plans, if the party would rope him in for the Lok Sabha elections, and if he stood by his past statements on “not going to Delhi”. The questions riled the usually mild-mannered leader, who shot back: “I say this very humbly, that I would rather die than ask for something for myself. And that’s why I said I won’t go to Delhi.”

He claimed he had accepted his status as former CM, having “risen above all this”. “A simple worker was chosen as CM by the BJP for so many years… the BJP gave me everything. Now it’s time for me to give back to the BJP. Why is this so hard to think of?… It doesn’t matter what I haven’t become,” Chouhan said, adding that he will “do whatever work the party assigns me”.

Calling the BJP as a party on a mission, he said: “I do not and have never taken any decision on my own, neither in the past, nor today, nor will I ever do so in the future. My party will decide.”

Still, Chouhan has made his preference clear. Even as others in the Madhya Pradesh CM race made a beeline for Delhi after the results, Chouhan chose to throw himself back into campaign mode, launching ‘Mission 29’, to win all 29 Lok Sabha seats for the BJP in the state.

With Ladli Behna the centrepiece of Tuesday’s show, as it was during Chouhan’s campaign, the former CM said women’s empowerment for him never meant just votes for him. “It came from my heart… I saw the plight of daughters and sisters in my village since my childhood. Daughters were killed in the womb, they were born in pain. I started the Ladli Laxmi Yojana…I used to help get daughters married even when I was nothing. I never thought I would become the CM,” he said.

As for this legacy, Chouhan’s promise of increasing the stipend under the Ladli Behna Yojana from Rs 1,500 to Rs 3,000 per month could take a while, with CM-elect Mohan Yadav saying cryptically that his government would continue “the good schemes”.

However, Chouhan assured that his poll promise of turning Ladli Behnas into Lakhpati Behnas next would be fulfilled. “The relationship of brother and sister will continue forever… The BJP government will fulfill the promises made in the manifesto,” he said.

Backing Yadav, Chouhan added: “Under his guidance, the BJP government will work swiftly to complete the ongoing projects. It will implement public welfare schemes and take Madhya Pradesh to new heights of progress and development.”

He said he remained proud of having brought the state so far. “When Madhya Pradesh came to us, it was a backward and BIMARU state… (We) embarked on a long journey of development and progress… I do not consider myself perfect, but I have done whatever I could with complete dedication… From roads with potholes to magnificent highways, we have brought the state from darkness to light… Now, this journey will reach even greater heights under the leadership of Mohanji.”

Asked who his favourite was among the two Deputy CMs – Jagdish Devda and Rajendra Shukla – Chouhan replied: “Mohanji bhi humare pyare hain (Mohanji is also my favourite).”

He only had one demand of the incoming CM, he said: permission to plant trees on government land, something of a passion for Chouhan. “We have to keep Earth habitable for future generations. Therefore, I plant trees every day,” he said.

The pace he set for his campaign, and after, has made many wonder about his energy. The 64-year-old said it was his connect with the public that kept him going. “My relationship with the people has not been that of a CM and his people, but rather a family relationship, a maternal uncle’s relationship, a relationship of love, a brother’s relationship, a relationship of trust.”

That image of the benevolent Mamaji was also on display Tuesday. As he shared a farewell lunch with journalists, Chouhan was the perfect host – giving away a rasgulla, preferring to wait for his missi roti, ensuring no one’s plate was empty.