Perform or perish: New chief to BJP

BJP chief Nitin Gadkari conveyed in his first interaction with party officials on Thursday that everyone would have to learn to work in trust and cooperation, and be ready to “perform or perish.”

BJP chief Nitin Gadkari conveyed in his first interaction with party officials on Thursday that everyone would have to learn to work in trust and cooperation, and be ready to “perform or perish.”

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Though Gadkari couched his message in not-so-stern tone, the import of what he sought to convey was not lost on BJP functionaries.

Under a mandate from the RSS to set the party in order, Gadkari made it clear that he wanted a “full stop” to internal squabbles witnessed for more than a year under the reign of his predecessor Rajnath Singh whose tenure ended last month.

Gadkari, who spoke in the presence of senior BJP leaders including L.K. Advani, M.M. Joshi, Sushma Swaraj and Arun Jaitley, said the party must function in an atmosphere of “mutual trust and openness” for optimum results.

Gadkari did not mince words in saying that “performance audit” would be the hallmark of his administration of the party and he expected BJP officials to adopt all-inclusive and democratic approach.

BJP spokesperson Ravi Shankar Prasad said the BJP leaders adopted a resolution that said “the terrorist attack at Lal Chowk in the heart of Srinagar is an onslaught on India’s sovereignty. Both the centre and the state are romancing with the ill-conceived ideas like autonomy and dilution of national sovereignty.”

The BJP leaders decided to launch an agitation on the price rise issue from January 18, culminating with a New Delhi rally in March, which would coincide with Parliament’s budget session.

In his remark, Advani said that the changes in the party “kindled new hope” and “would go to strengthening the party.”