Amid speculation about what he and the BJP are planning for his future, Shivraj Singh Chouhan has said he is addressed as a former chief minister but is not a rejected one, and that people’s love for him has remained strong despite stepping down from the top post in Madhya Pradesh.

“I’m now addressed as the former chief minister, but I’m not a rejected chief minister. Many times, chief ministers quit the post when people start abusing them for being in power for too long. But, even after quitting the chief minister’s post, people shout for me and call out ‘Mama’ wherever I go. The love of the people is my real treasure,” Mr Chouhan, whose popular nickname means uncle, said while addressing an event at the MIT School of Government in Pune on Friday.

“Stepping down from the chief minister post doesn’t mean that I will leave active politics. I am not in politics for any post, but for serving the people,” the BJP’s longest-serving chief minister said.

Speaking about his long electoral career, starting with his maiden assembly polls triumph from his home seat of Budhni in 1990, Mr Chouhan attributed his victories to contesting elections honestly.

“I don’t speak the language of arrogance. I have won 11 elections but I don’t campaign for myself in the elections. I go to the constituency just a day before filing the nomination, when the people of the village come to me with money and a list of contributors. If you contest elections honestly, people will side with you,” he asserted.

The remarks come a month after Mohan Yadav was named the chief minister in Madhya Pradesh and not Mr Chouhan, who was looking for a fifth term. The BJP had swept the elections in the state, winning 163 out of 230 seats despite being in power there for nearly 20 years.

Soon after the results were declared on December 3 and there was a buzz about a new face becoming the next Madhya Pradesh chief minister, Mr Chouhan had said, “While other BJP leaders are going to Delhi, I won’t go to Delhi. I would prefer dying rather than going to Delhi to ask something for myself.”

Cryptic Remarks

The former Madhya Pradesh chief minister has also hit the headlines for a few cryptic comments made over the past few weeks.

Just a few days after Dr Mohan Yadav replaced him, Mr Chouhan had said “Sometimes one gets ‘vanvas’ (exile) while a ‘raj tilak’ (coronation) is imminent, but whatever happens actually takes place for a bigger purpose.”

A few days later, while addressing a spiritual organisation’s event in Bhopal, he had said, “There are also people who change their colour if one isn’t the chief minister anymore. They treat his feet like a lotus, but once he isn’t in power, then his pictures disappear from hoardings like horns from the head of a donkey.”

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has been summoned for questioning by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in the Delhi liquor policy case for the fourth time. He has been asked to appear before the probe agency on January 18.

This comes after Arvind Kejriwal skipped January 3 questioning, saying that the summons issued by the ED were illegal and its only aim is to arrest him.

Mr Kejriwal, also the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) chief, had refused to appear before the probe agency on two earlier summons for November 2 and December 21 as well.

The AAP chief had been questioned by the Central Bureau of Investigation in connection with the case in April, but had not been made an accused by the agency.

Ever since the first summons was issued by the Enforcement Directorate, there has been intense speculation that the Delhi chief minister would be arrested by the agency after his questioning. 

With three of its leaders — Manish Sisodia, Sanjay Singh and Satyendra Jain — behind the bars, AAP has long been anticipating the eventuality and has discussed the possible courses of action.  They even want Mr Kejriwal to remain the Chief Minister and do his job from jail.

The CBI contends that liquor companies were involved in framing the excise policy, which would have brought them a 12 per cent profit. A liquor lobby it dubbed the “South Group” had paid kickbacks, part of which was routed to public servants. The Enforcement Directorate alleged laundering of the kickbacks.

The BJP has alleged that the proceeds of the alleged scam were used by the AAP to fund its large-scale campaign in Gujarat, in which it got a 12.91 per cent votes and established itself as a national party.

Confidence in India’s leadership has grown in recent years and the country is being hailed as the most stable country from a political risk perspective, says the chief of the US-India Strategic Partnership Forum. In an exclusive conversation with NDTV, Mukesh Aghi speaks extensively about the changing dynamics of global politics and how the United States now is considered a country with significant political risk.

“Well, we should talk about country risk analysis, especially political risk, and India used to always come up there as a political risk country,” says Mr Aghi, emphasising the historical perception of India’s political landscape.

“For the first time, I’m saying India is coming as the most stable country from a political risk perspective,” he added.

Watch #NDTVDialogues – @soniandtv in conversation with @MukeshAghi, @Amb__ArunKSingh
and Ranju Alex.

Tomorrow at 7.30 pm, only on NDTV 24×7 and https://t.co/hMlRpgaRS6 pic.twitter.com/AFYDGADJEm

— NDTV (@ndtv) January 12, 2024

Mr Aghi drew a contrast with the uncertainty prevailing in the United States, stating, “US is the other extreme now. We have no idea what’s going to happen in the US. President Trump could come back, or President Biden could be elected, or Nikki Haley could be there.”

Describing this as turmoil, he stressed on the volatile nature of the political situation in the United States.

Mr Aghi said that the world is in a state of flux, with nearly 50% of the population set to vote in various countries, ranging from the US and India to Russia, Indonesia, and Pakistan.

“I think overall, what we’re seeing, the world is in a flux. Almost 50% of the population is going to vote, all the way from US, India, to Russia, to Indonesia, Pakistan itself.  We see a change happening. I think for the first time after the Second World War, what we’re seeing is there’s a shift in the balance of power,” he said.

Expressing optimism about India’s role in this evolving scenario, Mr Aghi said that countries like India are becoming more assertive and economically robust.

“Countries like India are coming out much more assertive, much more, I call, opulent from the perspective of economic growth,” he stated.

The US-India Strategic Partnership Forum (USISPF), formed in 2017, aims to bridge the gap between business and government and foster closer public-private sector partnerships across all facets of the economy and society in the United States and India.

Mr Aghi underlined the multifaceted rise of India, both economically and politically. “In every aspect, you’re seeing India rising. You have a leadership which has the confidence, which tends to permeate the confidence in the population,” the US-India Partnership Forum head said.

Looking ahead to 2024, Mr Aghi predicts continued growth and confidence in India.

“I think as we look at 2024, we are seeing India’s economic growth, India’s confidence will keep on rising as things move forward,” he says, highlighting a positive trajectory for India on the global stage.