Despite a significant setback for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the Lok Sabha elections in Rajasthan, the state's influence in the Union Cabinet remains strong.
Four Members of Parliament (MPs) from the state—Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, Bhupendra Yadav, Arjun Meghwal, and Bhagirath Chaudhary—have been included in the Union Cabinet.
This development is surprising, given the BJP's history of clean sweeps in Rajasthan, compared to the recent reduction to only 14 seats.
Of these, Bhagirath Chaudhary will become a minister for the first time.
Among the four MPs from Rajasthan set to become ministers, two are from the OBC category, one is Dalit, and one is from the general category.
Bhupendra Yadav and Bhagirath Chaudhary belong to the OBC category, with Bhagirath being part of the Jat community. Arjun Ram Meghwal is a prominent Dalit figure from Rajasthan, and Gajendra Singh Shekhawat comes from the Rajput community.
Besides these four faces, Ashwini Vaishnav will also represent Rajasthan. Vaishnav, a Rajya Sabha MP from Odisha, has previously served as a minister in Modi's second term. He hails originally from Jodhpur.
Gajendra Singh Shekhawat
Gajendra Singh Shekhawat first entered politics in 1992, winning the student union president election at JNV University, Jodhpur, representing the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad. He entered active politics in 2014, contesting the Lok Sabha election from Jodhpur on a BJP ticket and defeating Congress candidate and Jodhpur royal family member Chandresh Kumari by a margin of 410,000 votes.
In 2017, Shekhawat was appointed Union Minister of State for Agriculture, a role he performed admirably. In the 2019 Lok Sabha election, he ran again from Jodhpur, defeating Vaibhav Gehlot, son of Congress stalwart and Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, by approximately 274,000 votes. During his second term, Prime Minister Narendra Modi appointed him as the Cabinet Minister of the newly formed Jal Shakti Ministry.
Shekhawat won the Jodhpur Lok Sabha seat for the third consecutive time, defeating Congress candidate Karan Singh Uchiyarda by more than 115,000 votes. Having previously served as Minister of State for Agriculture in Modi's first term and Union Minister of Jal Shakti in Modi's second term, he is set to take oath as a Cabinet Minister again in Modi's third term.
Arjun Ram Meghwal
Arjun Ram Meghwal served as the Minister of Law and Justice, and Union Minister of Culture and Parliamentary Affairs of India in the outgoing government. A seasoned politician, Meghwal has previously held positions as Union Minister of State for Finance and Union Minister of Water Resources, Ganga Development. He represents the Bikaner Lok Sabha constituency and has been elected to the Lok Sabha since 2009.
In May 2023, Meghwal was assigned the Ministry of Law. He is a prominent member of the Bharatiya Janata Party and has served as the Chief Whip and Minister of State for Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises. Meghwal first won the Bikaner Lok Sabha seat by a margin of 55,711 votes over his nearest rival, Govind Ram Meghwal.
Bhupendra Yadav
Bhupendra Yadav, elected as an MP for the first time from Rajasthan, is recognized for his strong organizational skills. In the recent elections, the BJP fielded him from Alwar, replacing Baba Balaknath. In the previous Modi government, Yadav was appointed a cabinet minister while serving as a Rajya Sabha MP. He is considered close to both Modi and Shah and enjoys support from the Sangh. His name has also been mentioned among the contenders for the national president.
Bhagirath Chaudhary
Bhagirath Chaudhary entered the political scene in 2003, becoming an MLA for the first time. He was re-elected as an MLA in 2013 and served as chairman of the Environment Committee from 2015 to 2017. In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the BJP gave him a chance, and he contested against Riju Jhunjhunwala of the Congress, winning by a margin of over 450,000 votes. Although Chaudhary lost the 2023 assembly elections, the BJP nominated him for the Lok Sabha elections from Ajmer, demonstrating the party's continued confidence in his leadership.
What next for Om Birla, Dushyant Singh?
The future role of former Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla is still unclear, and there is speculation about what responsibility he will assume in this term.
Additionally, the exclusion of Dushyant Singh, a five-time MP from the state, from the Modi Cabinet has raised eyebrows.
Notably, the BJP contested the assembly elections with Prime Minister Narendra Modi as the central figure instead of Vasundhara Raje, former two-time Chief Minister. Following the party's win, Bhajanlal Sharma, a first-time MLA, was appointed as the Chief Minister.
Raje, who is a significant figure in the party and serves as the National Vice President, was noticeably limited to campaigning for her son’s Lok Sabha seat in Jhalawar, despite expectations for her to be more active both in the state and across other constituencies. On the day of the election results, PM Modi was seen encouraging Dushyant Singh, leading to speculations that Singh might secure a place in the Union Cabinet as a concession for not appointing Raje as Chief Minister. However, this did not materialize, even as former Chief Ministers from other states, like Shivraj Singh Chauhan, reportedly secured Cabinet positions.
This has fueled speculation that internal conflicts within the party, particularly involving the Vasundhara camp, might have impacted the party’s performance in several seats, with reports of these issues reaching the high command.
If these claims hold any truth, Rajasthan's political landscape may witness intense political maneuvers in the coming days.
Vasundhara Raje, known for her assertive leadership style, is unlikely to remain passive in the face of repeated setbacks.
