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Ravinder Raina rushes to Katra after revolt rattles BJP’s J&K unit
The BJP's local unit is managing internal dissent after replacing Rohit Dubey with Baldev Raj Sharma as the candidate for Vaishno Devi, leading to protests and threats of mass resignations.
The Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) local unit has gone into damage control mode, with dissenting party leaders and their supporters resorting to open revolt over distribution of party tickets for the ensuing assembly polls beginning September 18.
Local unit chief Ravinder Raina was on Wednesday rushed to Katra to placate Rohit Dubey and his supporters after the party replaced his candidature with former MLA Baldev Raj Sharma from Shri Mata Vaishno Devi assembly constituency.
Dubey’s supporters including Ritu Thakur threatened to resign en-masse from the BJP. The visibly angry BJP party workers raised slogans against the BJP while vouching for Dubey.
Staging a dharna at Katra’s main chowk, they demanded that the party high command reverse the decision to replace Dubey or else they would ensure defeat of the BJP candidate from the Vaishno Devi seat.
“We worked 24x7 for the sangathan. The party first announced Rohit Dubey as its candidate from Vaishno Devi constituency but then replaced him with Baldev Raj Sharma. We swear in the name of Mata Vaishno Devi that we won’t vote for BJP and ensure its defeat,” said one of Dubey’s supporters.
Raina, however, tried to soothe frayed nerves, saying, “The BJP is a family, which believes in the doctrine of nation first, party second and self last. I am meeting each one of them.”
He met Dubey and assured to look into the matter afresh. Later, Dubey appealed to his supporters to suspend their protest.
“Everyone is disappointed by the decision of the party but we should not forget that what we are today, is all because of the sangathan. The party president has called me to Jammu tomorrow. He has assured me to look into the issue and talk to party high command. Till then I request all of you to call off your Dharna,” Dubey said.
Political experts attributed the move to replace Dubey by former MLA Baldev Raj Sharma to the latter’s mass base in Vaishno Devi constituency, including in Bhomag. Notably, the Vaishno Devi constituency came into being post the delimitation exercise in May 2022.
It has just 56,000 voters and is considered one of the smallest assembly constituencies.
“Though Rohit Dubey has a strong base in Katra, he does not have a base in Bhomag”, a local said.
Sharma had won 2009 assembly polls from the Reasi assembly constituency on a BJP ticket.
Support from unexpected quarters
Interestingly, former Congress minister from Reasi, Jugal Kishore Sharma wasted no time to express his solidarity with Rohit Dubey after the BJP dropped his name from the list of candidates.
Sharma, who went to meet Dubey to express his sympathies, told media persons that had the BJP retained Dubey it would have been good because he worked a lot for the party. He also dropped enough hints that following Dubey’s replacement, he may weigh his options and contest as independent from Vaishno Devi.
Meanwhile, people from various places poured in at the BJP party headquarters to protest after their leaders were denied tickets to contest the polls.
