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Ten ex-CMs who rebelled against their ouster
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Political parties have ousted sitting CMs often, based on the decision of the party High Command. Here are ten ex-CMs who have not left without a fight.
Unhappy ex-CMs: (From L-R) Narayan Rane, O. Panneerselvam and Capt. Amarinder Singh are former CMs who rebelled against the party which ousted them
Story so far: Jharkhand’s ex-CM Champai Soren, who resigned to make way for Hemant Soren to once again take the Chief Ministership, is likely to join BJP soon. The 67-year-old Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) veteran and tribal leader, who landed in Delhi on Sunday (August 18, 2024), stated that he felt “insulted” during his tenure and that “all options are open” for him until the upcoming Jharkhand Assembly polls.
In a lengthy post on micro-blogging site X, Mr. Soren cited various instances where he was not allowed to convene a meeting of the legislative party and was suddenly asked to resign, prompting him “to seek an alternative path.” Mr. Soren had been in contention for the CM post in 2002, 2006 and 2010, but took a backseat for JMM chief Shibu Soren and then his son Hemant Soren in 2013, according to Businessline.
The ex-CM joins a long list of former CMs who have been miffed at their removal by their respective parties. Here’s a look at ten such CMs.
N.T. Rama Rao (Andhra Pradesh CM: 1983-84, 1984-89, 1994-95)
Telugu Desam Party (TDP) founder N.T. Rama Rao’s (NTR) third stint as Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister was cut short as rebellion began to simmer within the TDP ranks. As NTR’s second wife Lakshmi Parvathi (whom he had married in 1993) began to interfere in party politics, NTR’s son-in-law Chandrababu Naidu, who had been with NTR since 1984, protested.
Rumours began to grow that NTR was grooming his wife to take over as CM, leading to Mr. Naidu’s rebellion. Ousting the TDP founder from his own party in September 1995, Mr. Naidu staked claim to the CM post with the backing of NTR’s sons and majority of the MLAs. Shocked at the betrayal, NTR urged the Governor to dissolve the Assembly but to no avail, as only 28 of 219 TDP MLAs pledged their support to him.
As Mr. Naidu took oath as Andhra Pradesh CM, NTR embarked on a Side tour to highlight Mr. Naidu’s betrayal. However, he failed to gain public support as Mr. Naidu along with NTR’s sons had blamed his wife for swaying the old widower and leading him astray. The actor-turned-politician never recovered from Mr. Naidu’s coup, and passed away in January 1996.
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Keshubhai Patel (Gujarat CM: 1995, 1998-2001)
The late CM of Gujarat Keshubhai Patel – who formed the first BJP government in 1995 and then in 1998, stepped down from his post in 2001. His ouster, which was prompted by the BJP high command due to failing health and alleged ‘irregularities in earthquake relief work’ in 2000, paved way for Narendra Modi to become the CM.
Miffed at his ouster and Mr. Modi’s rising stature in the BJP, Mr. Patel quit the BJP in 2012 claiming that “the party under Mr. Modi had moved away from its principles towards personal glorification” to form the Gujarat Parivartan party. After his party was drubbed in the 2013 State polls, he rejoined the BJP in 2014. He passed away on October 29, 2020 due to health complications.
Narayan Rane (Maharashtra CM: 1999)
A grassroots ‘shakha pramukh’ (ward leader) who climbed up the ranks to the leadership of the Shiv Sena, Narayan Rane, struck gold in 1999 when he replaced Manohar Joshi as Maharashtra’s Chief Minister. At the time, Mr. Joshi was mired in an alleged land scam. As Sena founder Balasaheb Thackeray began grooming his son Uddhav to take over as party president, Mr. Rane began nursing ill-will against him.
He soon switched to the Congress and attempted to split the Shiv Sena by wooing 40 of its MLAs but failed to do so. In 2017, he quit the Congress too. alleging that he had been promised the CM post. He then floated his own party — the Maharashtra Swabhiman Paksh, which finally merged with the BJP in 2019.
O. Paneerselvam (Tamil Nadu CM: 2001-2002, 2014-15, 2016-17)
Touted as AIADMK supremo J Jayalalithaa’s ‘chosen successor’, Mr. O. Panneerselvam —a loyal AIADMK worker who rose through the party ranks from Periyakulam to Chennai— has served as Tamil Nadu’s Chief Minister thrice. All his stints were cut short by his own ‘voluntary’ resignation to allow Jayalalithaa to take over the reigns again as CM; one instance was for Ms. Sasikala to take over.
After taking oath as CM tearfully, on December 5, 2016, the night Jayalalithaa died, he once again resigned on February 2017 to allow Sasikala to be selected as CM. However, within two days, he alleged that he was compelled to resign and was repeatedly humiliated when he was CM. Sitting in protest on Marina beach outside Jayalalithaa’s memorial, he claimed that only who enjoyed the cadre’s support and the people’s mandate should be named CM. He was expelled from the party and E Palaniswami was named CM.
ARIYALUR: TIRUCHI, TAMILNADU: 23/08/2017: Tamil nadu Chief Minister Edapaddi Palaniswami, and Deputy Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam at the MGR centenary celebration in Ariyalur
By August 2017, the two factions of AIADMK led by Mr. Paneerselvam and Mr. Palaniswami merged once again, ousting Sasikala who was by then convicted in a disproportionate assets case and sentenced to a four-year jail term. In the aftermath of the poll drubbing in the 2021 State elections, tensions between the two factions rose again and Mr. Paneerselvam along with several supporters was ousted again from AIADMK. Mr. Palaniswami was appointed as party general secretary.
With the BJP falling out with the AIADMK in 2024, Mr. Paneerselvam tried to woo the saffron party but to no avail as he failed to win the Ramanathapuram Lok Sabha seat as an independent candidate.
Capt Amarinder Singh (Punjab CM: 2002-2007, 2017-2021)
Veteran Congress leader Captain Amarinder Singh was forced to step down as Punjab Chief Minister in November 2021 after a massive feud with then-State unit chief Navjot Singh Sidhu. Mr. Singh, a close peer of late PM Rajiv Gandhi was blindsided by the party high command’s decision to elect Mr. Sidhu as State chief. While Mr. Singh and Mr. Sidhu had locked horns since 2019, the latter’s continuous condemnation of the former’s policies created a political crisis in Punjab which was due to go to polls in 2022.
While Mr. Singh was the favoured pick for Congress’ CM candidate in 2022, Mr. Sidhu opposed it saying the choice will be made by the people. With the Gandhis tacit backing, Mr. Sidhu unleashed an all-out attack on Mr. Singh’s government leading to his resignation. He was then replaced by Charanjit Singh Channi – a close aide of Mr. Sidhu. The ousted CM then floated a new party called Punjab Lok Congress, which later merged with the BJP.
Vasundhara Raje (Rajasthan CM: 2003-08, 2013-2018)
Rajasthan’s only woman Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje – one of BJP’s early members, was denied the top post after the saffron party swept the State in the 2023 polls. The Scindia family scion, who is still the Vice-President of the BJP, was reduced to campaigning merely for her son in Jhalawar-Baran during the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
Ms. Raje first ran afoul with the BJP high command in 2015 due her close ties with former IPL commissioner Lalit Modi, who faced corruption charges and fled to the U.K. Her alleged role in facilitating his flight to U.K and her son’s close business ties with the disgraced businessman raised the ire of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and then-BJP chief Amit Shah. While she was allowed to complete her full term till 2018, she was then sidelined in the State.
New Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot is greeted by former chief minister Vasundhara Raje after the swearing-in ceremony at Albert Hall in Jaipur on December 17, 2018
| Photo Credit:
Rohit Jain Paras
In 2020, when Congress ‘young turk’ Sachin Pilot rebelled against CM Ashok Gehlot, Ms. Raje allegedly banded with BJP veteran Kailash Meghwal to ‘save’ the Gehlot government by sabotaging Mr. Pilot’s entry into the saffron party’s folds. While Ms. Raje herself has refuted these claims, local BJP leaders like Satish Poonia and Gulab Singh Kataria were allegedly miffed with Ms. Raje. Despite enjoying state-wide support, Ms. Raje’s supporters have been denied party tickets and she herself was sidelined for the CM post, which ultimately went to Bhajan Lal Sharma.
Digambar Kamat (Goa CM: 2007-2012)
Digambar Kamat, a Goa politician who has continuously switched between Congress and BJP, was elected as Chief Minister of the coastal State in 2007. After completing a full five-year term, Mr. Kamat remained with the Congress even in 2019 when 14 MLAs shifted to BJP. However, in 2022, Mr. Kamat, along with Leader of Opposition Michael Lobo and six others, switched allegiance to BJP, citing dissatisfaction with the party’s high command. During this time, the Trinamool Congress and Aam Aadmi Party also were taking the electoral plunge in the State and wooed miffed leaders from both parties.
Vijay Bahuguna (Uttarakhand CM: 2012-2014)
Chosen as the Chief Minister over rival Harish Rawat, Vijay Bahuguna was sworn in as Uttarakhand’s sixth CM in March 2012. However, he was replaced in 2014 with Mr. Rawat by the Congress after the botched-up rescue operations by his government in the wake of the 2013 floods.
Miffed at his ouster, in March 2016, Mr. Bahuguna along with eight other Congress MLAs rebelled against the Harish Rawat government, seeking a division of votes when the Budget was presented. While the Speaker refused their request and passed the budget, the rebels headed by Mr. Bahuguna, approached the Governor seeking a trust vote – leading to the imposition of President’s rule in the State.
With both BJP and Congress scrambling to gain support to stake claim to a government, the Supreme Court intervened and re-instated the Harish Rawat government. Angered by their defeat, Mr. Bahuguna and the rebels joined the BJP. Prior to 2021, there were rumours of them rejoining the Congress, but it did not materialise.
Jagadish Shettar (Karnataka CM: 2012-2013)
A Jan Sangh loyalist,Jagadish Shettar rose up to become Karnataka CM in 2012. He had previously missed out on the post in 2008 after BJP favoured Lingayat strongman B.S. Yediyurappa for the top post. Mr. Shettar’s stint as CM was short-lived, as ex-CM Yediyurappa parted ways with the saffron party in 2013, splitting the party’s hold on Lingayat community and leading to a loss in the 2013 State polls. Mr. Shettar was then elected as Leader of Opposition.
In 2019, when the BJP toppled the Congress-JD(S) government, Mr. Shettar chose to hold a ministerial portfolio in the Yediyurappa government. However, when Basavaraj Bommai was picked to succeed the 79-year-old CM in 2021, resentment flared in Mr. Shettar, who chose to remain out of the government.
Karnataka, Belagavi (27/ 03/ 2024): Jagadish Shettar, BJP candidate from Belagavi Lok Sabha seat , B S Yediyurappa, former CM and senior BJP leader, and others join a party campaign rally in Belagavi on Wednesday
After being denied a ticket for the 2023 State polls, Mr. Shettar – usually a soft-spoken leader – hit out at BJP’s national organising secretary B.L. Santosh and Union Minister Prahlad Joshi. He alleged that the saffron party was attempting to sideline the Lingayats in Karnataka and soon enough jumped ship to the Congress. After failing to win the State election, he returned to the BJP in January 2024. Despite winning the Belgaum Lok Sabha seat this year, he was overlooked by the high command, which inducted two Yediyurappa loyalists — V. Somanna and Shobha Karandlaje into the Union cabinet.
Jitan Ram Manjhi (Bihar CM: 2014-15)
Bihar’s first Mahadalit Chief Minister – Jitan Ram Manjhi – was sworn in as CM in May 2014 after JD(U) chief Nitish Kumar resigned from the post in reaction to his party’s defeat at the hands of the BJP in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls. He handed over the reins to Mr. Manjhi, who had previously served under several Chief Ministers in Bihar since 1983 — Chandrashekhar Singh (Congress), Satyendra Narayan Sinha (Janata Party), Jagannath Mishra (Congress), Lalu Prasad (RJD), Rabri Devi (RJD), and Nitish Kumar (JDU).
After a nine-month term, he was commanded by the JD(U) to resign from the post to make way for Mr. Kumar’s return — similar to Champai Soren’s current predicament. However, unlike Mr. Soren, Mr. Manjhi refused to resign and was ordered to prove his strength via a vote of confidence. With not enough MLAs to prove his majority, he resigned from the JD(U) and floated his own party Hindustan Awam Morcha (Secular). In 2015, he allied with BJP and Lok Janshakti Party to take on the JDU-RJD Mahagathbandhan, but won only one seat.
After switching alliances to the Mahagathbandhan, the 79-year-old politician returned to the NDA folds in 2023 along with Mr. Kumar and has been inducted into the Modi cabinet as its oldest minister.
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