Month after LS poll defeat, Rajasthan minister Kirodi Lal Meena resigns

JAIPUR: Kirodi Lal Meena has resigned as a minister in the Rajasthan government following the BJP’s underwhelming performance in the Lok Sabha polls in the state.

During the recently held elections, Meena (72) had said he would quit the Bhajan Lal Sharma government if the BJP loses any of the seven parliamentary seats under his responsibility.

The Rajasthan agriculture, rural development, disaster management and relief minister had said Prime Minister Narendra Modi assigned him the seven seats in eastern Rajasthan on which he worked hard during the polls.

But in the Lok Sabha poll results announced on June 4, the BJP lost some of these seats, including his native Dausa.

Overall the BJP won 14 of the state’s 25 seats, its tally coming down from 24 in the 2019 polls.

“Kirodi Meena resigned as minister. He gave the resignation to the chief minister 10 days back,” an aide of the minister said.

On Thursday, Meena posted the famous Ramcharitramanas lines ‘Raghukul reeti sada chali aai, pran jaai par vachan na jaai’ on X to underline his unwavering intent to keep his promise at any cost.

Meena campaigned on eastern Rajasthan seats including Dausa, Bharatpur, Karauli- Dholpur, Alwar, Tonk-Sawaimadhopur and Kota-Bundi.

In the results declared last month, the BJP lost Dausa, Bharatpur, Karauli-Dholpur and Tonk-Sawai Madhopur.