With the role of the BJP’s most prominent leader in Rajasthan, Vasundhara Raje, still undefined in the run-up to the upcoming state Assembly polls, a factor that might cast a shadow on its electoral campaign, the party high command is expected to take a call on the state leadership’s face for the polls soon, sources said. While Raje, the former chief minister, remains the tallest among the state BJP leaders, there have been several names doing the rounds in party circles as CM aspirants. These include state BJP president Satish Poonia, Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekawat and Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, with Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw being the latest addition to this list. BJP insiders close to Raje claim that no other state party leader has been able to match her “popularity and acceptability” among the people. Sources in the central BJP however said the party leadership is unlikely to declare Raje as the CM candidate ahead of the elections slated for December. “If the top leadership were ready for it, there would have been some moves to empower her by now,” said a source. Sources said the BJP leadership has a “definite plan” for Rajasthan and that a “clear picture” will emerge in this regard soon after the party’s national executive meeting, which will be held in New Delhi on January 16-17. Senior BJP leaders expect the leadership to resolve the conundrum affecting the state unit soon. “The BJP national leadership realises Raje's significance in the state unit with regard to the party's prospects. So there would be a formula to placate different quarters,” said a leader familiar with the developments in the Rajasthan unit. Some Raje loyalists charged that she had been “kept out by the state BJP dispensation” from electioneering activities so far which, they claimed, had turned out to be “failures”. “Just look at the Jan Akrosh Yatra which the party has taken out across the state. If you look at the public response and the crowds, it failed miserably. Even the national leaders' rallies could not mobilise impressive crowds. See, Rajasthan is a state in which voters want to see strong leaders with recall value at the helm. When the Congress has both Ashok Gehlot and Sachin Pilot, the BJP should have someone to match their image. Raje is a leader who delivered twice and even when the party ended up in Opposition under her leadership it was with a respectable tally,” said a source, adding that the BJP’s recent internal surveys have also indicated that its chances of coming to power without Raje would be “bleak”. The Raje faction also claims the buzz that the Jhalraptan MLA does not enjoy warm ties with the top leadership – including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah – is a “narrative created by her party rivals”. “Three months back, at a meeting in Jodhpur, Shah spoke at length about Raje's works. Both Modi and Shah always make it a point that she is given due respect,” said the source. Another party source in Delhi said, “When the state leaders were trying to sideline Raje, the central leaders had asked them specifically to take her along and not to humiliate her.” A Rajasthan BJP leader however said that despite many attempts from the state unit, Raje has been “non-cooperative” and has stayed away from its programmes and meetings, including the core committee meetings. The Raje faction rejected it by saying that the state dispensation has always sought to block her participation by “informing her about these meetings very late or not including her in the schedule of key functions”. A party leader said Raje has tried to run the state unit like “her domain”, which the current dispensation does not appreciate. Significantly, not many in the central BJP agree with the argument that the party's prospects would be hit by Raje's absence or resentment. “Vasundhara Raje was brought into the state leadership to replace Bhairon Singh Shekhawat by sidelining a number of young leaders waiting in the wings. Shekhawat had backed her to settle scores with several of them as part of the Rajasthan unit's internal power dynamics. But eventually everyone came along. Rajasthan is a state in which BJP has a strong presence and with the party having a strong and popular national leadership, any decision taken by them will ultimately be accepted there,” said the Delhi source quoted above.
