When a Union minister stands in a village, among families whose homes have been demolished, and says his own party’s officials have crossed every limit, people notice, especially when the Union minister is a former four-time chief minister of the state. Shivraj Singh Chouhan’s visit to Kosmi village has become a story about tribal families and a question about the BJP in Madhya Pradesh.

What happened in Kosmi

Chouhan, now Union Agriculture Minister, visited Kosmi village in the Budhni assembly area of Sehore district on Sunday. Reports say the forest department and other officials had carried out an anti-encroachment drive in which homes belonging to tribal families were demolished, crops were destroyed, and a well was filled with soil. Reports from the village say 12 homes were demolished, and the families belong to the Barela tribal community, who say they had lived there for years. Women broke down when Chouhan arrived.

What Chouhan said

Chouhan called the action “oppression and injustice” and demanded action against the officials responsible. According to a statement from his office, the forest department and district administration had tried similar action a few months ago, and he had told them not to demolish the homes.

He pointed out that the families are BJP voters, and said that “Mohan ji became chief minister because of their votes”. He called it a conspiracy by some officials to malign the party and the chief minister, which is a way of criticising the administration without directly criticising Yadav. He said he would raise the matter with Chief Minister Mohan Yadav, and spoke to BJP state president Hemant Khandelwal. He also promised that the demolished homes would be rebuilt, with food and temporary accommodation arranged until permanent housing is ready.

What the forest department says

Forest department sources defended the operation as an action against illegal huts and cultivation on forest land. Their official account refers to 10 families, against the 12 homes reported from the village. We have not seen a full statement from the department or the district administration, and we have not seen the details of how the families came to live on the land, or whether they hold any rights claims, which would be central to the legal position.

The political reading

The Congress was quick to use it. Leader of the Opposition Umang Singhar shared a video of the demolition and wrote that tribal families were being uprooted amid a tussle between “Mohan-Mama”, a reference to Yadav and Chouhan (Chouhan is widely known as “Mama” in the state). The Congress’s argument is that the families are paying the price for a rivalry inside the ruling party.

The facts, however, do not yet support that claim. Chouhan has not directly blamed the chief minister, and the reports we reviewed show no independent evidence that Yadav directed the operation or that officials were trying to weaken Chouhan politically. Chouhan’s claim that officials were trying to tarnish the CM’s reputation is his own view.

Not the first time

This is not the first time Chouhan has raised tribal evictions in the area. One report says that in June 2025 he pulled up the Yadav government over an eviction drive in the Kheoni Wildlife Sanctuary, which also falls in the Budhni area, and another report says the chief minister transferred a forest officer in Sehore after Chouhan took tribals who had complained about a demolition to meet him. We have not verified the dates or details of those earlier episodes. Taken together, they suggest a pattern of Chouhan speaking up for tribal families in his old constituency, and of the government responding in some cases.

Why the “fault lines” question keeps coming up

Chouhan led Madhya Pradesh for most of the last two decades before Yadav took over in December 2023, and he remains a senior figure in the BJP and a popular one in the state. Any public criticism from him, even directed at officials, therefore draws attention. Supporters of both men are likely to read the episode differently: as a senior leader standing up for the vulnerable, or as a sign of strains in the party. Neither reading is established by the facts reported so far, and both Chouhan and the party have kept the language focused on the administration.

What we don’t know

We have not seen a response from Chief Minister Mohan Yadav, a statement from the BJP leadership beyond Chouhan’s own conversation with the state president, or confirmation from the government that the homes will be rebuilt. We also have not seen any account from the district administration of whether the families were given notice.

What happens next

The next steps to watch are whether Chouhan and Yadav meet, whether any official faces action, and whether the promised houses and relief reach the families.

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