India: Vasundhara Raje, Yogi Balaknath or a new face? Who will be Rajasthan's next chief minister?

The newly elected MLAs of the Bharatiya Janata Party in Rajasthan will meet on Tuesday to pick the state's next chief minister. BJP's central leadership will reveal their choice for Rajasthan CM in the meeting, ending days of suspense after the party won the assembly elections with 115 seats.

BJP MLA Jogeshwar Garg said the observers appointed for the legislative party meeting will arrive at Jaipur and hold the meeting with the MLAs on Tuesday morning. The party has appointed Rajnath Singh, Saroj Pandey and Vinod Tawade as the observers for the Rajasthan Assembly elections in 2023. After the meeting, the MLAs will choose the legislative party leader or the CM designate.

Who will be the next chief minister of Rajasthan?

As Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot's tenure has ended, here's a list of BJP candidates who are frontrunners for the post of Rajasthan Chief Minister:

Vasundhara Raje

Vasundhara Raje, the two-time chief minister of Rajasthan, is one of the frontrunners for the post of Rajasthan CM. Sheheld the Rajasthan CM post from 2003 to 2008 and then again from 2013 to 2018. In the recent Rajasthan Assembly elections,she won the seat from her constituency, Jhalrapatan, for the fifth timewith 138,831 votes.

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After the election results, Vasundhara Raje met BJP national president JP Nadda in Delhi on December 7. Before her Delhi visit, Raje met 25 BJP MLAs a day after the election results. The MLAs said they would support Raje if the BJP leadership chooses her for the post in the state, PTI reported.

Yogi Balaknath

Yogi Balaknath's name has also been making rounds for the post of Rajasthan's next chief minister. Amid the discussions, he wrote on X, "Ignore the discussions in the media and social media after the election results came out. I would want to gain experience under the guidance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi."

Yogi Balaknath is the eighth mahant of Baba Mast Nath Math. He won the seat from his constituency, Tijara, by a margin of 6,173 votes, defeating the Congress candidate Imran Khan.

After the elections, he met with Union Home Minister Amit Shah on the same day Vasundhara Raje met JP Nadda.

Other Contenders

BJP's selection of Dr Mohan Yadav as the next chief minister of Madhya Pradesh has sparked rumours that Rajasthan might see a fresh face. Other contenders for the post of Rajasthan CM include Diya Kumari, Rajvyavardhan Singh Rathore, Gajendra Singh Shekhawat and Arjun Meghwal.

Former MP Diya Kumari won Jaipur's Vidhyadhar Nagar seat with over 70,000 votes. Moreover, former Union Minister Rajyavardhan Rathore won the Jhotwara seat on the outskirts of Jaipur. He is from the Rajput community, one of the most notable sections of the population.

(With inputs from agencies)