E-Paper
BJP to limit number of outstation workers in poll-bound states
After the debacle in Delhi and Bihar where the deployment BJP workers from other states allegedly led to turf war resulting in the party’s resounding defeat, it has decided to bank on local units in the upcoming assembly polls in five states. The BJP will keep in check the deployment of outstation workers.
Having burnt its fingers in Bihar and Delhi, the BJP now plans to limit the number of workers it will send to election bound states for poll management.
Several hundreds of BJP workers from Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and other states were sent to Delhi and Bihar, resulting in turf war with local leaders in the Assembly elections in these two states.
The BJP lost both elections with its leaders blaming sabotage and indifference of local workers to a large extent.
The local leaders had accused their counterparts from other states of acting like “super boss” during election, who conducted poll management without enough knowledge of ground realities.
“We don’t want its repeat in Uttar Pradesh and four other election bound states. These are too crucial for us,” a BJP leader involved in election management in these states told HT.
Local leadership of these states had flagged this matter to the party’s central leadership on the sidelines of the recent meeting of the BJP national executive in Delhi.
“We were told that local leadership will be in charge and the limited number of leaders from outside, if and when sent, will only provide a helping hand instead of taking control,” a functionary of the BJP’s UP unit said.
Assembly elections in UP, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Manipur and Goa spread across February and March are tipped to be a referendum of sorts on the demonetisation decision taken by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on November 8.
BJP chief Amit Shah had declared the victories in local bodies election in several states post November 8 as the people’s stamp of approval for the note ban.
