Over the past one month, 60 such appointments have been made and more are in the pipeline. Chairpersons and vice-chairpersons have been named for ten development authorities, eight corporations, five commissions and four boards, among others, so far.

The ruling BJP wants to accommodate its former MLAs and former ministers in these sinecures so that they can also enjoy perks of office. The BJP has been in power in the state for 23 years now – with a brief break of 18 months in between. Naturally, it has a vast number of leaders – all of whom want a share in power. The strength of the council of ministers is capped at 35 – 15 per cent of the 230-member state assembly. As such, state-run bodies come in handy. The ruling party also wants to reward its candidates who lost with a small margin against heavyweight Congress leaders in the 2023 assembly elections.

So far, among the new appointees, the supporters of chief minister Mohan Yadav outnumber all others. Other big shots like former chief minister and currently union minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, former union minister and currently assembly speaker Narendra Singh Tomar and Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia haven't been able to secure positions for their loyalists. Their nominees are on the waiting list and are expected to be obliged in the future rounds of appointment.

While appointment of non-officials as chairpersons and members is mandatory in statutory commissions such as Commission for Women, Commission for Protection of Child Rights. Human Rights Commission and Commission for SCs and STs, there is no such compulsion in the case of state-run corporations, boards and authorities. But these have become sources for providing employment to party leaders, and keep mischief makers and malcontents busy and occupied.

During the run-up to the assembly elections, the then chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan had found a novel way to oblige party leaders who could not be accommodated even in the boards and corporations. The chief minister decided to set up 'Welfare Boards' for all the (Hindu) castes and subcastes. Thus, Brahmin Welfare Board, Kori Welfare Board, Rajak Welfare Board, Teldhani Welfare Board, Vishwakarma Welfare Board, Swarnakala Welfare Board and so on were constituted. The chairpersons of these boards were granted the status of ministers, with all the pecuniary benefits and perks that come with it. And they were supposed to work for the welfare of the respective communities. Whether or not this stratagem contributed to massive success of the BJP in the assembly polls is anybody's guess.

Be that as it may, most of the state-run corporations and boards in Madhya Pradesh– barring a few like the State Tourism Development Corporation – are in dire straits. A majority of them are running in loss. Now, these cash-strapped bodies will have to spend money on arranging accommodation, vehicles and other paraphernalia for their chairpersons and vice-chairpersons.

As managing directors, it is the bureaucrats who are supposed to run corporations. Technically, the role of the chairperson is limited to presiding over the meetings of the Board of Directors. They are not supposed to interfere in day-to-day working of the corporation. However, the politicians appointed to these bodies are not content with a formal role. And that often leads to a cold war between the political appointees and the IAS officers who are the chief executives, further affecting the functioning of these already-crippled bodies.

But the politicians appointed to positions in these bodies consider it a great achievement. They travel to Bhopal from their hometowns in huge convoys and organize grand functions where they 'takeover' their new assignment.

On May 11, BJP leader Saubhagya Singh Thakur travelled from Ujjain to Bhopal – a distance of around 200 km - to take charge as chairman of the Madhya Pradesh Textbook Corporation in a convoy of more than 250 vehicles. And that too after the Prime Minister Narendra Modi's appeal to Indian to save fuel. After the controversy grew, Thakur clarified that "only around 25 vehicles" had started with him from his village Mangrola in Ujjain district. He said supporters kept joining the convoy during the journey and claimed he was not aware that so many vehicles were travelling with him. He, however, did not express any regrets. (IPA Service)