THE HINDU EDITORIAL

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Change in Chhattisgarh: On the new BJP government and the road ahead

The BJP will have to make good on its poll promises in the tribal State

The BJP has 10 more slots in the Council of Ministers to be filled, and it will be guided by considerations of caste and gender balancing. The new government will have to hit the ground running — from fulfilling economic promises, including the construction of 18 lakh homes for the rural poor, giving the outstanding bonus on paddy for 2016-17 and 2017-18, i.e., the last two years of the previous BJP government, and disbursal under Mahtari Vandan Yojana of ₹12,000 every year to all married women, to conducting a swift probe into the corruption allegation that the BJP levelled against the Bhupesh Baghel regime earlier. It must also resolve the stalemate over two Reservation Amendment Bills that provide for a 76% quota in jobs and educational institutions. These Bills, passed unanimously by the previous Assembly, have been withheld by Raj Bhavan. With a BJP government at the helm indicating an end to the tussle that the previous government had with the Governor, a swift implementation of the proposed changes under a tribal Chief Minister is likely to boost the BJP’s credentials before the Lok Sabha election. The new government will also have to take a view on the Swami Atmanand English medium schools and colleges, touted as a major achievement by the Congress government. Urban voters decisively turned in favour of the BJP in polls, and the new government will have to pay attention to their concerns.