BJP would have formed govt in 2018 but Chouhan resigned in hurry: Vijaywargiya

BJP general secretary Kailash Vijaywargiya on Friday said if Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan had not resigned after the 2018 Assembly elections, the party would have formed government in the state.

BJP general secretary Kailash Vijaywargiya on Friday said if Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan had not resigned after the 2018 Assembly elections, the party would have formed government in the state. He was replying to a question about the talk of Congress getting strong in Vindhya and Chambal regions of the state.

The BJP leader said there were such claims before the 2018 Assembly elections too, but the saffron party fared well in these areas. “In 2018 too our government would have been formed as we got more votes, but Shivraj ji acted in a hurry,'' he said.

The party finally formed government after a year and a half (when the Kamal Nath-led Congress government collapsed following the rebellion by Jyotiraditya Scindia and MLAs loyal to him), Vijaywargiya said.

Asked how exactly Chouhan acted in haste, he said, “By resigning (after election results).” Vijaywargiya, Union civil aviation minister Jyotiraditya Scindia and Chouhan arrived in Gwalior en route to Morena to attend a wedding in the family of a BJP leader.

Vijaywargiya also expressed confidence that the BJP will retain power in the state in 2023. About Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's Bharat Jodo Yatra, he said it was only entertaining people but it would not benefit the Congress.

People's do not take Gandhi seriously, he said, adding that the Congress will perform poorly in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh elections. It was a matter of concern that the Congress party which claims to have played a major role in the country's freedom movement is continuously shrinking, Vijaywargiya said.

Later, when asked by reporters about Vijaywargiya's remarks about 2018 elections, Scindia said in 2023 the party's flag will fly in the state under Chouhan's leadership. To a question about the Gwalior Vyapar Mela, Scindia said it was not held during the COVID-19 pandemic but it will be held this time.