Chouhan takes oath, returns as MP chief minister for the fourth term

Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Monday returned as chief minister of Madhya Pradesh for the fourth time, over 15 months after his government was voted out of power.

The 61-year-old BJP leader was sworn in by Governor Lalji Tandon at Raj Bhawan here at 9 pm.

Chouhan was earlier in the day elected leader of the state BJP legislature party at its meeting here.

Due to the coronavirus situation, no BJP leader fron Delhi travelled to Bhopal for the legislature party meeting, though the party's central observers Arun Singh and Vinay Sahasrabuddhe participated through video conferencing.

Popularly known among his followers as 'Mamaji', Chouhan was sworn in chief minister of Madhya Pradesh thrice earlier - in 2005, after Uma Bharti stepped down over a riots case, and for later two full terms in 2008 and 2013.

He stepped down after the Congress won a narrow majority in the December 2018 Assembly elections, after which the Kamal Nath government came to power.

Stumped by the rebellion of party colleague Jyodiraditya Scindia, who joined the BJP and resignations of 22 Congress MLAs, Nath resigned as chief minister last week, paving way for Chouhan's return.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi took to Twitter to congratulate Chouhan. He wrote: Congratulations to Shri @ChouhanShivraj Ji on taking oath as CM of Madhya Pradesh. He is an able and experienced administrator who is extremely passionate about MP’s development. 

Best wishes to him for taking the state to new heights of progress