From Bhajan Lal Sharma to Himanta Biswa Sarma and Yogi Adityanath, a look at BJP's next-gen CM picks in recent years

The duo of Narendra Modi and Amit Shah is grooming a fresh batch of leaders who could further cement the saffron party's electoral dominance, analysts say (Image: AP)

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the country's most dominant political group, appears to be looking at a generational shift in terms of its chief ministerial picks over the past few years.

Instead of backing veterans, the BJP leadership seems to be experimenting with a new set of leaders, who are seen as relatively young, aggressive, come with a fresh political vigour and are expected to lead the party into the next decade.

The chief ministerial picks in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh -- the three Hindi heartland states which the party won decisively in the November polls -- indicate that the duo of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah is grooming a fresh batch of leaders who could further cement the saffron party's electoral dominance, analysts say.

The shift towards second-rung leaders is a strategy which the BJP top brass seems to have adopted since 2017, when the saffron-clad priest-cum-politician Yogi Adityanath, then in his mid-40s, was given the charge to run India's most bellwether and most populous state Uttar Pradesh.

Here's a look at BJP's next-gen CM picks in recent years:

Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath

In 2017, the BJP ended its 15-year drought from power in Uttar Pradesh and wrested the state with a brute majority. While speculations were rife that seasoned veterans Manoj Sinha or Rajnath Singh -- both union ministers then -- would take over the chief ministerial task, the party shocked analysts by opting for Yogi Adityanath. Before becoming the CM, Adityanath was a five-time sitting MP from Gorakhpur. The 51-year-old, according to analysts, is one of the prime candidates to emerge in the prime ministerial race within the BJP after Narendra Modi retires.

Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma

Few would have predicted the meteoric rise of Sarma, a Congress turncoat, within the BJP ranks. He joined the party in 2016, weeks ahead of the Assembly polls in Assam, and is considered to have played a key role in defeating the then Tarun Gogoi-led Congress in the state. Five years later, when the BJP retained Assam in the 2021 polls, the party decided to replace its incumbent CM Sarbananda Sonowal with Sarma. The 51-year-old has also emerged as one of the star campaigners of the BJP in poll-bound states.

Uttarakhand CM Pushkar Singh Dhami

Dhami, 48, was picked as the chief minister of the hill state in July 2021, almost a year after CM Trivendra Singh Rawat resigned following an internal dissent, and his successor Tirath Singh Rawat also had to vacate the chair. After the 2022 elections, the BJP leadership poised faith in Dhami and allowed him to continue as the chief minister, even as he lost his seat.

Arunachal Pradesh CM Pema Khandu

Khandu, 44, is among the youngest chief ministers of the country. He was appointed to the top political office in 2016, under a Congress-led government. He subsequently jumped ship with all the party MLAs barring one to the People's Party of Arunachal, and in the next few months, they switched ranks to the BJP. The saffron party decided to continue with him as the Arunachal CM following the victory in the 2021 Assembly elections.

Goa CM Pramod Sawant

Sawant, 50, succeeded Manohar Parrikar as the chief minister of Goa in 2019. His focus on administration is seen as similar to the approach adopted by his late predecessor. Despite the presence of an array of senior leaders and Congress turncoats, the BJP leadership decided to retain him as the CM after the party retained power in the 2022 elections.

Chhattisgarh CM-designate Vishnu Deo Sai

Speculations were rife that Raman Singh, the 71-year-old BJP veteran and former three-time chief minister of Chhattisgarh may return as the CM if the party wins the November polls. However, the party surprised analysts by choosing tribal leader and ex-Union minister Vishnu Deo Sai, 59, as the head of the next state government. The decision assumes significance as tribals constitute an estimated 30 percent of Chhattisgarh's population and the BJP performed well in seats where the community's votes were considered to be decisive.

MP CM-designate Mohan Yadav

The choice of Mohan Yadav, 58, as the next chief minister of Madhya Pradesh, came as a shocker as he would be replacing Shivraj Singh Chouhan, the BJP veteran who headed the state government for 16 out of the last 18 years. Despite pollsters crediting Chouhan's flagship 'Ladli Behna' and 'Ladli Laxmi' schemes to have played a key role in BJP's retention of power, the party decided to pass the baton to a younger leader. His successor, Yadav, is a three-time MLA and a former higher education minister.

Rajasthan CM-designate Bhajan Lal Sharma

The most surprising choice that the BJP made, after winning the recent Assembly polls in the Hindi heartland, was to pick Bhajan Lal Sharma, a first-time MLA, as the chief minister of Rajasthan, analysts said. Among those whom the 56-year-old leader ousted in the chief ministerial race were MPs Baba Balaknath, Diya Kumari and Gajendra Shekhawat, along with the party's tallest face in Rajasthan and former two-time CM Vasundhara Raje.