Post comes to Himachal after more than a decade Till now,Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumals son and BJPs second-term MP from Hamirpur Anurag Thakur had been drawing attention for his efforts in positioning Himachal Pradesh on the world cricket map,especially after successfully hosting two IPL matches in Dharamsala earlier this year. On Tuesday,Anurag was given a new responsibility. BJP president Nitin Gadkari appointed him the president of the All India Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha. This adds more strength to Himachals political profile after former Cabinet minister J P Naddas recent induction as the party general secretary. Veteran leader and former CM Shanta Kumar was already the national vice-president of the BJP. After Naddas appointment to the partys national team,there was speculation in certain quarters about Anurag getting a big assignment. I had been hearing some whispers about the party leadership considering a few names,including mine,for the BJYM presidents post. I am thankful to the top leaders who found me suitable for the job, said Anurag,who was in Shimla on Tuesday. Dhumal,who returned from New Delhi on Monday evening after attending BJPs national executive meeting in Patna,welcomed the appointment and said he was confident that Anurag would give his best to the job. The post has come to a Himachal BJP leader for the second time after. Nadda having donned the post in the 90s,before he returned to the state to contest the 1993 Assembly election. Anurag,36,was elected to the Lok Sabha from Hamirpur first time in 2008 and had registered a record victory margin of 1.74 lakh votes. The seat was earlier represented by his father. His second victory came in 2009. Dhumals elder son Anurag had done his early education at Jalandhar in Punjab and had an active career in cricket,which was the reason he was elected for the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association (HPCA) chief. At 25,he was the youngest president of HPCA. He shot into fame after the Congress government enacted a legislation in 2003-04 to remove him from the post of HPCA president. He contested the decision and moved the Supreme Court,eventually winning the case.
