28 ministers were sworn in to Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhah's cabinet
Days after they were inducted, the 28 ministers in Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan's cabinet have yet to be allotted portfolios. This is despite the Chief Minister having spent the past two days in Delhi, discussing this issue with the BJP's central leadership.
Mr Chouhan returned to Bhopal, empty-handed, on Tuesday and said: "I am working on it and will allocate the portfolios soon".
Sources have pointed to another clash between the Chief Minister and Jyotiraditya Scindia, the former Congress leader whose switch to the BJP, along with 22 MLAs loyal to him, triggered the fall of the Kamal Nath-led Congress government.
A significant number of those MLAs were among the 28 political leaders sworn in on July 2.
The two camps, sources said, had failed to agree over key portfolios like urban development, PWD, revenue, health, transport, water resources, commercial taxes and excise.
In addition, Mr Scindia reportedly also wants independent charge for four MoS (Ministers of State).
The apparent discord in allocation invited a jab from former Chief Minister Kamal Nath, who said: "The government was formed as part of a deal, Council of Ministers was another deal and portfolios will also be allocated out of that deal".
Chief Minister Chouhan met BJP President JP Nadda, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Union Minister Narendra Singh Tomar. He also met with President Ram Nath Kovind and Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu during the visit.
Mr Scindia reportedly met with BJP National Vice President and Madhya Pradesh BJP chief Vinay Sahastrabudhe in Delhi on Monday evening.
Meanwhile, in a related development, Kamal Nath today began his election campaign for by-polls to 24 seats. These include the 22 whose holders resigned and led to the ousting of his government.
Kamal Nath started his campaign with a visit to the Mahakal Temple in Ujjain.
"I am not a maharaj (a reference to Jyotiraditya Scindia) nor a tiger or Mama. I am a Jan Sevak," he said, cautioning voters against political leaders who switched ideologies.
The Election Commission has yet to announce dates for the by-polls.