PM to meet Council of Ministers, BJP state units sit next week in run-up to polls

BJP leaders from the eastern and northeastern states have been called for a meeting in Guwahati on July 6, the northern, central and western state leaders will meet in New Delhi on July 7 and leaders from the southern states will gather in Hyderabad on July 8.

Sources said the organisational revamp includes some changes at the national level, in which a few more new general secretaries and secretaries will be inducted.

Sources also said Prime Minister Narendra Modi may go for changes in his Council of Ministers to “infuse freshness” in the departments that have not performed up to his expectations. Changes also help the government to remove the fatigue factor, the sources said.

Modi is scheduled to meet the Council of Ministers at 4 pm on July 3. Speculation is rife that the BJP leadership is contemplating on bringing in some senior leaders from the states to the Centre – both in the government and the party.

With the party already making efforts to renew ties with allies, sources in the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena said its representation in the Union Council of Ministers is on the cards.

Changes in a number of state units have also been on the table, but with the Opposition parties, threatened by its dominant position in national politics, coming together in Patna last week to build a common platform, “the BJP has to scale up its poll preparations and review its poll strategies,” party sources said.

The BJP, which has already initiated efforts to reinvent the NDA and secure its position even in the event of a possible fall in tally, wants to breathe fresh air in feud-hit state units and get the house in order before the big test in 2024.

Its first focus is expected to be on the states going to Assembly polls this year – Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Telangana and Mizoram.

In the backdrop of a detailed review conducted by the national leadership on the performance of the organisations in these states, some functionaries are expected to be changed.

Despite the change of guard in August in the Chhattisgarh state unit, internal issues in the party, it is learnt, have not yet been settled. At a time when the Congress is making attempts to put up a united face – on Wednesday, it appointed T S Singhdeo, a known rival of Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel in the party as the Deputy Chief Minister – the BJP will have to get its act together, said a party MP from the state. The party had appointed Arun Sao as chief of its Chhattisgarh unit in August last year.

In Madhya Pradesh, there is talk that a new face could come up at the helm of affairs in the state party. But at least two senior leaders in the party pointed out that time is too short for any leader to make drastic differences before the Assembly elections.

“It will not be sensible to appoint a new chief at the last minute. The national leadership is seized of the situation and they will take a final decision after considering all the possible advantages and disadvantages,” said a party leader from the state.

The BJP appointed CP Joshi as chief of the Rajasthan unit in March this year and the party is unlikely to announce a Chief Minister candidate before the elections in the state due later this year.

The state unit in Telangana, a southern state where the BJP has kept its focus to emerge as an alternate force, is still struggling with deep internal strife. A large section of party leaders say continuance of Bandi Sanjay Kumar, whose term ended in February, could spoil the party’s prospects in the Assembly elections.

Etela Rajendran, who had joined the BJP from the ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi (now Bharat Rashtra Samiti ) in which he was considered the right hand of Chief Minister K Chandrasekar Rao or KCR, has been projected by a section as the next party chief. “He can put up a strong fight against KCR. He will be like Himanta Biswa Sarma in Assam for the BJP,” a party leader said.

Sources, however, said no decision has been made yet and that the “picture will be clear only after the July 8 meeting”.

Party sources, however, conceded that the BJP in Telangana has to “walk miles more” to present itself as a formidable force against the BRS. “The party will have to find candidates for a decent and formidable fight in at least 50 per cent more seats in the state. We are good in 40 per cent of the state,” said a party leader from the state.

The party is also not ignoring the Congress. The Congress, which dominated the state political scene till the formation of the state after the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh in 2014, is on a revival path. “At one side, the Congress is also like the BJP – it also needs to revive in 60 per cent more seats. But at least the BJP has the resources and machinery to pick up the fight even at the last minute,” the leader said.

“Congress has gained support among the Muslims and the Dalits, so the strengthening of the Congress will weaken the BRS and the BJP can consolidate its majority votes,” the leader said.

While a section argues that Sanjay Kumar’s continuance could be a liability for the party, others say even if there is no change in the state unit, a collective leadership – of Sanjay Kumar, Rajendran, Arvind Dharmapuri (Lok Sabha MP) and D K Aruna (former minister) – can make the pitch for the party.

The BJP will also have to finalise a decision on its prospective alliance with TDP. After the party national leadership met TDP leader and former Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu earlier this month, state leaders have objected to any electoral truck with the TDP, saying it could damage their chances in Telangana.