Bhopal/IBNS: In a surprise move, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) named Dr. Mohan Yadav as the new chief minister of Madhya Pradesh as against the very popular face of Shivraj Singh Chouhan, who had served as the head of the state four times and won this election with a massive mandate. 

Amidst reports of fighting incumbency, the BJP scored a landslide victory in Madhya Pradesh by winning 166 seats.

Yadav, 58, a leader from the Yadav OBC community, got elected from the Ujjain Dakshin (South) constituency in the Ujjain District in the newly elected assembly, a seat he has represented since 2013.

Yadav was chosen as the BJP Legislature Party leader during the meeting held here on Monday.  While OBCs make up more than half of the state's population, interestingly, the Yadav community is not among the most influential.

Considered close to the parent Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), Yadav served as cabinet minister in the previous Shivraj Singh Chouhan government, handling the higher education portfolio.

Born on March 25, 1965, in Ujjain to Poonamchand Yadav (father) and Lilabai Yadav (mother), Yadav studied at Vikram University. Yadav has MBA and PhD degrees. Married to Seema Yadav, the couple has two sons and a daughter.

He served as the cabinet minister in Shivraj Singh Chouhan's government.

Mohan Yadav has won the 2023 elections by more than 13000 votes.

He is married to Seema Yadav. They have two sons and a daughter.

Mohan Yadav has several educational degrees including BSC, LLB, MA, MBA and PhD.

Outgoing finance minister and two-time MLA Jagdish Devda from Mandsaur and outgoing public relations minister MLA Rajendra Shukla from Rewa have been elected as deputy chief ministers.

Ex-union agriculture minister Narendra Singh Tomar has been elected as the speaker of the Madhya Pradesh Assembly.

As Mohan Yadav comes from the backward class, with his appointment, the BJP hopes to woo the OBC community which forms over half the electorate in Madhya Pradesh.

Yadav enjoys a clean image and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh's backing.

He will become the fifth Chief Minister of the BJP after he takes oath in the upcoming days.

BJP leaders like Sunderlal Patwa, Uma Bharti, Babulal Gaur and Shivraj Singh Chouhan have earlier served as CM of the state.

Chouhan served the state for over 16 years as CM.