Raipur: After winning a landslide victory in the state assembly elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has ended the suspense over who will be the next Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh. On Sunday, the party’s newly elected MLAs unanimously chose Vishnu Dev Sai, a former Union Minister and a tribal leader, as their leader and the Chief Minister designate.
Sai, who hails from a small village in Jashpur district, thanked the party and the people for allowing him to lead the state. He also expressed his gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP President J.P. Nadda, and Union Home Minister Amit Shah for their guidance and support.
Sai said that his priority as the Chief Minister would be to implement the BJP’s election manifesto, titled ‘Modi’s Guarantee’, which promises various welfare schemes and development projects for the people of Chhattisgarh. He said that he would fulfill all the promises made under the manifesto with honesty and dedication.
He announced that his first task would be to approve 18 lakh houses under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana, a flagship scheme of the Modi government that aims to provide affordable housing to the poor. He also said that on December 25, the birthday of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, he would deposit a year’s bonus in the accounts of all the state’s farmers.
Sai’s mother, Jashmani Devi, expressed her happiness and pride over her son’s election as the Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh. She said that it was a dream come true for her son, who had always wanted to serve the state and the country.
Union Minister and BJP leader Renuka Singh Saruta, who is also a tribal MLA from Chhattisgarh, congratulated Sai and said that it was a historic moment for the state, as for the first time, a tribal community worker coming from a farmer family had been elected as the Chief Minister. She said Sai’s leadership would usher in a new era of progress and prosperity for Chhattisgarh.
Sai was among the five contenders for the post of Chief Minister, along with MLA Renuka Singh, former state minister Ramvichar Netam, Lata Usendi, and Gomti Sai. However, in the legislature party meeting held at the BJP office in Raipur, he emerged as the consensus candidate and was elected as the CM.
The BJP has won 54 out of 90 seats in the Chhattisgarh Assembly elections, defeating the incumbent Congress party, which had won 68 seats in the last elections in 2018. The Congress has been reduced to 35 seats this time, while the Gondwana Gantantra Party (GGP) has managed to win one seat in the state.
