Civil aviation minister Jyotiraditya Scindia on Wednesday told BJP workers in poll-bound Madhya Pradesh that he would like to think of himself as a mere “sevak of Maa Bharati” and not a minister or an MP, hinting that he was open to contesting the Assembly elections by saying he would abide by party directives.

The BJP leadership, in a bid to counter simmering anti-incumbency and retain power in Madhya Pradesh for a fifth straight term, has so far fielded seven Lok Sabha MPs, including three Union ministers, to contest the Assembly elections next month. This has led to speculation that Jyotiraditya, who hails from the Gwalior royal family, could also be asked by the leadership to contest the polls.

“I am just a common worker of the BJP…. Workers in the BJP abide by whatever the party organisation decides…. I will carry out whatever responsibility the party gives,” Jyotiraditya said when asked about contesting the upcoming Assembly polls.

Jyotiraditya’s defection from the Congress in 2020 had helped the BJP pull down the Kamal Nath government in Madhya Pradesh. Some 22 Congress MLAs had resigned and defected to the BJP after Jyotiraditya joined the saffron party, leading to the collapse of the Congress government in the state. He was elected to the Rajya Sabha and rewarded with the civil aviation portfolio in the Modi government.

Speculation about Jyotiraditya contesting the Assembly polls gained strength after his aunt Yashodhara Raje Scindia, a minister in the Madhya Pradesh government, declared that she will not contest the upcoming polls because of health reasons. Yashodhara represents the Shivpuri Assembly segment, known as the pocket borough of the Gwalior royal family, and this led to talks about Jyotiraditya replacing her.

Jyotiraditya reached Gwalior on Wednesday and went around addressing BJP’s polling booth-level workers, presenting himself as a humble party worker. “In the BJP, there are no leaders, ministers or MPs. The party just has ‘sevak’ of mother India. If I have a target in my life, it is to get a place in your heart,” he told the party workers.

The show of humility by the royal family member was seen as an effort to win the trust of the BJP workers, many of whom are said to be unhappy with his induction into the saffron party. Jyotiraditya had lost the last Lok Sabha polls (as a Congress candidate) from his family seat Guna to a low-profile BJP leader and so his induction had not gone down well among saffron party workers.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to visit Gwalior and address a rally later this week.