The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has named Diya Kumari, scion of the royal family of Jaipur, as one of the new Deputy Chief Ministers of Rajasthan. Born on January 30, 1971, to the last ruling Maharaja of Jaipur, Man Singh II, and daughter of war hero Brigadier Sawai Bhawani Singh, Kumari has a rich background. Her political journey began in 2013 as an MLA, later ascending to the national stage as a Member of Parliament in 2019. Beyond politics, she manages various business ventures and runs the Princess Diya Kumari Foundation, focusing on women's empowerment and philanthropy.

The BJP has chosen first-time MLA Bhajan Lal Sharma as the new Chief Minister of Rajasthan. A three-member BJP central observer team led by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh arrived in Jaipur to oversee the legislature party meeting where Sharma was elected CM. Sharma won from the Sanganer constituency in the recent state elections where the BJP secured a thumping majority with 115 seats. Other names speculated for the post included former CMs Vasundhara Raje and Kirori Lal Meena, but the party sprang a surprise by picking the relatively low-profile Sharma to lead the government. His elevation underscores the generational shift in the BJP's state leadership after its spectacular comeback in Rajasthan.

The Income Tax department recently unearthed a massive Rs 350 crore in cash along with 3kg gold during raids on properties of Congress MP Dhiraj Sahu. Referring to the popular show 'Money Heist', PM Modi said Congress has been looting India for 70 years through such "legendary heists". The cash haul is the highest ever by a probe agency. This set off a political blame game between BJP, BJD and Congress in Odisha. BJP alleged BJD allowed Sahu's liquor business for 20 years. BJD hit back saying BJP in the Odisha state is trying to save Congress. Congress dismissed the charges as political vendetta. The high-profile raids have stirred up a political storm ahead of key state and national elections.

As the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) unveils potential chief minister candidates in Rajasthan, the party's MLAs will convene on Tuesday to decide the state's new leader. Among the prominent contenders are former Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje, Union Ministers Arjun Ram Meghwal, Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, and Ashwini Vaishnaw. The BJP, having already announced chief ministers in Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh, anticipates resolving the suspense in Rajasthan. Party observers, including Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, will meet in Jaipur. The swearing-in ceremony for the chosen leader is expected to take place on Friday following the BJP's triumph in Rajasthan's elections.            

The BJP is set to announce Rajasthan's next Chief Minister on Tuesday after summoning all party MLAs for a meeting in Jaipur. Observers Rajnath Singh, Saroj Pandey, and Vinod Tawde will oversee the proceedings. There is speculation that two-time CM Vasundhara Raje may be sidelined like in Chhattisgarh and MP. Several MLAs have openly supported Raje for CM though BJP contested polls on collective leadership. The delay has heightened anticipation of a new CM face as BJP considers options to appeal to its core vote bank. After legislative party leader is selected, the swearing-in with over 10 ministers is likely on December 15.

The fourth meeting of the INDIA opposition bloc will be held on December 19th in Delhi to chart out seat sharing and finalize joint campaign plans for the 2024 polls. Sources said the parties intend to put forth an alternative, positive agenda while projecting unity with the motto "main nahin, hum" (not I, but us). The slogan earlier created controversy for its use in Congress' 2014 campaign after claims it was first coined by PM Modi. The meeting comes after Congress' poll routs, posing a challenge to formulate an Opposition agenda. The bloc would also give shape to common programmes to take on the BJP as they aim to showcase collective leadership rather than personality-driven politics.

Shivraj Singh Chouhan congratulated Mohan Yadav after he was elected BJP legislative leader and next Madhya Pradesh chief minister, saying: "I congratulate my dedicated colleague...I am sure under PM Modi's leadership, you will take MP to new development heights." The 58-year-old Yadav, an OBC leader and Ujjain MLA, was the Higher Education Minister under Chouhan, whose welfare schemes helped his party tap the women's votes in the last elections. Chauhan expressed confidence in CM Yadav to "create new records in the field of public welfare" under the "guidance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi". Yadav won recent elections by nearly 13,000 votes. His name ended 10-day BJP suspense over the top post after the election, as he was a surprise against other names floated.

The BJP has named Mohan Yadav, 58, a leader from the Yadav OBC community, as the surprise new Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh. Although Yadavs are not the most influential, the OBCs make up over half the state's population. On Monday, Mr. Yadav was elected as the BJP legislative party leader just 15 days after the party's big state election win. The outgoing Higher Education Minister thanked the party, saying "I am a small party worker...I thank the party for this opportunity." Emphasizing unity, Mr. Yadav was nominated by outgoing CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan and supported by other senior leaders. State BJP boss VD Sharma said Prahlad Patel, Narendra Tomar, and Kailash Vijayvargiya "supported the proposal."

Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra has moved the Supreme Court days after being expelled from the Lok Sabha over the 'cash-for-query' controversy. On December 8, the House adopted the Ethics Panel report finding Moitra guilty of accepting illegal gratification to promote a businessman's interests. Moitra denied the charges and accused the committee of "bulldozing" her without proof. She claimed being denied a chance to defend herself when the report was tabled and permission to cross-examine her estranged partner and BJP MP Nishikant Dubey who levied the allegations. The West Bengal leader stated the panel disregarded rules and said her expulsion was unjustified without establishing the bribery charges.

As the BJP named Vishnu Deo Sai, a tribal leader as Chhattisgarh's first tribal chief minister, speculation heightened over selection of CMs for Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. Despite recent buzz, former Rajasthan CM Vasundhara Raje and current MP CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan continue to remain key contenders. The BJP's newly-elected Madhya Pradesh MLAs will meet Monday in Bhopal to choose their legislative party leader, supervised by senior party observers. A similar legislative party meeting of Rajasthan MLAs is likely on Tuesday with different BJP central observers. After following a new leadership trend in Chhattisgarh, the BJP may opt for fresh faces in the remaining states too rather than retaining incumbents Raje and Chouhan. But the veteran leaders still stand as tough competition.