MP mantri threatens to resign after being stripped of forest portfolio, issue resolved, BJP says
Bhopal: State scheduled caste welfare minister Nagar Singh Chouhan on Monday threatened to resign from the Mohan Yadav ministry for being stripped off the portfolio of forest and environment.
Talking to the media in Alirajpur in Madhya Pradesh, Mr Nagar, a tribal, said that he would not be able to serve people of his community after he was divested of the forest and environment portfolio and hence, there was no point for him to continue in the ministry.
Mr Chouhan’s statement comes a day after he lost the forest and environment portfolio to the newly inducted minister Ramnivas Rawat who had switched over to BJP from Congress a few days before the outgoing Lok Sabha elections.
The four-time MLA Mr Chouhan also dropped hints that his wife Anita Singh Chouhan who is a BJP MP from Ratlam-Jhabua (ST) LS constituency may also quit to express her solidarity with him.
Mr Chouhan said that tribals in the districts of Alirajpur, Jhabua, Ratlam, Barwani, Dhar and Khargone have high expectations from me to work for their development.
But, he would not be able to meet their expectations after the crucial portfolio of forest and environment was taken away from him.
Mr Chouhan said that he was given three portfolios of scheduled caste welfare, forest and environment when he was inducted in the Mohan Yadav ministry whereas he wanted only the tribal welfare portfolio with an objective to work for the uplift of the tribals.
Mr Chouhan regretted that he was stripped of a portfolio despite being a long time member of BJP whereas leaders from other parties who have joined BJP recently have been rewarded with important portfolios.
He was referring to Mr Rawat.
Mr Chouhan however said that he would take the final decision on the matter after he put up his grievances with senior leaders of BJP here.
In a related development, Mr Chouhan was pacified by the state leadership to drop the idea of quitting the ministry.
“Mr Chouhan’s wife is an MP from Jhabua. Hence, there was no question of any kind of discrimination by the party against him. He was pacified by the state leadership and the issue is now resolved”, a senior BJP leader here said, requesting not to be quoted.
