Days after the BJP pulled off an emphatic win in Madhya Pradesh assembly polls, the suspense over the state’s chief minister is likely to end on Sunday when the party’s 163 newly elected legislators are expected to meet to pick their leader in the presence of central observers.

The BJP on Friday appointed Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, its OBC ‘Morcha’ head K Laxman and its secretary Asha Lakra as central observers for electing the leader of its legislative party in Madhya Pradesh.

The meeting of the newly elected MLAs is likely to take place on Sunday, a state senior functionary of BJP told PTI over the phone. On Thursday night, BJP general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya told reporters in Bhopal that the suspense over the MP chief minister would end on Sunday.

The BJP in MP this time contested the November 17 assembly elections without projecting incumbent Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan as its CM face. It was after 20 years that the party did not name its chief ministerial candidate before polls in MP.

According to party insiders, the BJP might zero in on another Other Backward Classes (OBC) chief minister in case it replaces Chouhan, the longest-serving chief minister of BJP in India with a break of 15 months. He is also the longest-serving chief minister of MP as well.

In such a condition, Prahlad Patel, a Lodhi who has been elected from Narsinghpur assembly seat and has resigned as Union minister, could become the frontrunner for the CM position. Lodhis are a part of the OBC community.

The BJP leadership has gone with OBC leaders for the top post in the state since 2003 when it projected Uma Bharti, a Lodhi. A year later, the party put its bet on another OBC, Babulal Gaur, and then finally on Chouhan in 2004, given the fact that the population of OBCs in MP was over 48 per cent.

Meanwhile, Patel has reached Bhopal from Delhi.

The name of Narendra Tomar, who has been elected from Dimani and has since resigned as Union minister, was doing rounds for the CM’s post. According to party insiders, Vijayvargiya and BJP state chief VD Sharma are among other potential candidates.

All four big guns – Patel, Tomar, Vijayvarigya and VD Sharma – have already met Home Minister and BJP’s master strategist Amit Shah in New Delhi. They also called on BJP president JP Nadda. These leaders have publicly denied that they are vying to be the CM.

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