One month of BJP govt in Rajasthan: How first-time CM Bhajan Lal Sharma has fared till now

Exactly a month ago, Bhajan Lal Sharma took oath as Rajasthan Chief Minister. It came three days after the BJP pulled a surprise by announcing the first time MLA’s name for the top post.

In a month, Sharma has been busy carrying out his duties without drawing much attention to himself or his statement. If anything, Sharma has yet to reveal his character in a way that other top politicians of the state such as Ashok Gehlot, Vasundhara Raje, Sachin Pilot, and Rajendra Rathore have over the years and the decades.

So far, Sharma has addressed only one press conference — on the day he took charge as the CM but where he did not field any questions. And since the first day, he has not made any extraordinary or unusual statements at public programmes and has kept his head low. In the press conference, Sharma underlined his government’s priorities: women’s safety, eradicating corruption, ensuring law and order, and stopping paper leaks. The first and the last were the big-ticket poll issues for the BJP last year.

In the following days, Sharma made courtesy visits to the party’s top leaders and held departmental review meetings. Perhaps the most noticeable among them was the one to his predecessor Ashok Gehlot at the latter’s residence. The last time this had reportedly happened was in 1998 when after becoming the CM Gehot visited the residence of outgoing CM Bhairon Singh Shekhawat. But this tradition apparently stopped with Vasundhara Raje’s win in 2003.

Interestingly, Gehlot continues to occupy the official CM residence and Sharma, who is currently living in temporary accommodation, will move into it after the “malmas” period is over.

While the CM may keep to himself around journalists, he has been actively engaging with the public