New Delhi Effecting an organisational rejig ahead of assembly polls in five states later this year and the 2024 general elections, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president JP Nadda on Saturday announced a new national team, members of which have been picked to balance regional aspirations, and in line with the party’s social engineering strategy of giving a prominent role to leaders from various castes.
From the poll-bound Telangana, former state unit president Bandi Sanjay has been included as national general secretary, along with lawmaker from Uttar Pradesh Radha Mohan Agarwal. Bandi, a firebrand leader at the forefront of taking on the Bharat Rashtra Samithi government in the state, on several occasions courted controversies with his comments, which did not sit well with the central leadership. A section of leaders in the state unit had complained to the central leadership to replace Bandi ahead of the polls scheduled for later in the year. Earlier this month, he was replaced by union minister G Kishen Reddy.
Three general secretaries dropped from the list are D Purandeswari, Dilip Saikia and CT Ravi. While Purandeswari was appointed as state president of Andhra Pradesh to help shore up the party’s fortunes in the state, Ravi is expected to find a slot in the Karnataka unit. Considered as a protégé of BL Santhosh, national general secretary (organisation), Ravi was accused of stoking controversies with his comments about wearing the hijab and love jihad conspiracy theory, and was chided by the high command when he spoke about BJP strongman BS Yediyurappa’s son BY Vijayendra’s candidature ahead of the state polls.
The team of eight national general secretaries includes Arun Singh, Kailash Vijayvargiya, Dushyant Kumar Gautam, Tarun Chugh, Vinod Tawde, Sunil Bansal, Bandi Sanjay Kumar, Radhamohan Agarwal. Santhosh continues to remain a national general secretary (organisation) and Shiv Prakash continues to be joint general secretary (organisation).
{{/usCountry}}The team of eight national general secretaries includes Arun Singh, Kailash Vijayvargiya, Dushyant Kumar Gautam, Tarun Chugh, Vinod Tawde, Sunil Bansal, Bandi Sanjay Kumar, Radhamohan Agarwal. Santhosh continues to remain a national general secretary (organisation) and Shiv Prakash continues to be joint general secretary (organisation).
{{/usCountry}}Eye on polls
With an eye on polls in Chhattisgarh, the BJP had included Saroj Pandey, who was dropped as national general secretary in 2020, and former state minister, Lata Usendi, as national vice-presidents. “Both these women leaders have their ear to the ground and have been long time karyakartas (workers). Their inclusion is an indication that the party has stepped up efforts to reinvigorate state unit to put up a fight against the Congress government,” a state leader said, seeking anonymity.
Saudan Singh, who was joint general secretary, organisation, Rekha Verma and Laxmikant Bajpai, both MPs from Uttar Pradesh, and Tariq Mansoor, member of the Uttar Pradesh legislative council, have also been included in the team of national vice-presidents.
Former chief ministers of Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh, Vasundhara Raje and Raman Singh, respectively, have been retained in the list of national vice-presidents. The team of 13 vice-presidents also has former Jharkhand chief mionister Raghubar Das, Bijayant Panda, DK Aruna and M Chuba Aao.
Minority outreach
The inclusion of former Aligarh Muslim University vice-chancellor Mansoor, and Anil Antony, son of former Congress minister AK Antony, as national secretaries is being seen as the party’s effort to burnish its credentials as an inclusive party. “There has been a lot of criticism that the party does not have Muslims and other minorities in its national team, as legislators or MPs. The BJP is an inclusive party and does not differentiate. The PM has explicitly said we must expand our outreach towards the communities without any expectation of support during elections,” a second party leader said, declining to be named.
While Mansoor is seen as the face of the party’s outreach towards the Pasmanda Muslims, particularly in Uttar Pradesh, with Antony’s inclusion the party is hoping to woo the Christian community in Kerala. The party had earlier deputed P Abdullakutty, a Muslim from Kerala as vice-president; he continues to hold the post.
Rajya Sabha MPs Kamakhya Prasad Tasa (Assam) and Surendra Nagar (UP) have been appointed as national secretaries.
There could be some more changes announced soon since some of the states have not been represented, said the first leader cited earlier. “The team is always a healthy mix of regional leaders and caste groups. Of late, there has been a complaint that the so-called upper castes are moving away from the BJP, but with the inclusion of Pandey, Agarwal and Bajpai, the party has addressed that concern as well,” he said.
Among those who have been dropped from the reconstituted team after Nadda was given a year’s extension in January include former West Bengal BJP unit president Dilip Ghosh and Gujarat Lok Sabha MP Bhartiben Shyal from the posts of national vice-presidents, and Sunil Deodhar, who was co-incharge of Andhra Pradesh; and Lok Sabha MPs Vinod Sonkar and Harish Dwivedi as national secretaries.
Those retained in the list of national secretaries are Pankaja Munde and Vijaya Rahatkar (Maharashtra); Satya Kumar (Andhra Pradesh); Arvind Menon (Delhi); OP Dhruve (Madhya Pradesh); Anupam Hazra (West Bengal); Alka Gurjar (Rajasthan); Asha Lakra (Jharkhand); Rituraj Sinha (Bihar); and Narendra Singh Raina (Punjab).
Among those who have been dropped from the reconstituted team after Nadda was given a year’s extension in January include former West Bengal BJP unit president Dilip Ghosh and Gujarat Lok Sabha MP Bhartiben Shyal from the posts of national vice-presidents, and Sunil Deodhar, who was co-incharge of Andhra Pradesh; and Lok Sabha MPs Vinod Sonkar and Harish Dwivedi as national secretaries.
Those retained in the list of national secretaries are Pankaja Munde and Vijaya Rahatkar (Maharashtra); Satya Kumar (Andhra Pradesh); Arvind Menon (Delhi); OP Dhruve (Madhya Pradesh); Anupam Hazra (West Bengal); Alka Gurjar (Rajasthan); Asha Lakra (Jharkhand); Rituraj Sinha (Bihar); and Narendra Singh Raina (Punjab).