Not just in Rajasthan, now Vasundhara Raje star of BJP show in Jharkhand

Perhaps for the first time in several years, the former CM deployed for a programme outside Rajasthan; has been assigned 4 constituencies in Jharkhand for rallies to mark 9 yrs of Modi govt

Written by Hamza Khan

Jaipur | Updated: June 14, 2023 10:18 PM IST

3 min read

Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje Scindia at a press conference at her residence in Jaipur. (Express Photo by Rohit Jain Paras)

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IN WHAT is being seen as another sign that Vasundhara Raje is back in the BJP scheme of things ahead of the Rajasthan elections, the former chief minister has been deployed by the party in distant Jharkhand.

On Tuesday, Raje held a rally in Godda as part of the BJP’s outreach campaign across the country to mark the completion of nine years by Narendra Modi as the Prime Minister. The plan is to have top BJP leaders cover all the Lok Sabha constituencies across the country.

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Raje has been tasked with the Lok Sabha constituencies of Giridih, Dumka, Godda and Koderma in Jharkhand. In that regard, the Tuesday rally wasn’t surprising.

What made it significant was that it was perhaps the first time in several years that the BJP engaged Raje in such a programme outside Rajasthan.

In the dozens of Assembly elections held across the country, as well as bypolls, Raje has not featured among the BJP star campaigners, even though she is the party’s national vice-president, apart from being a two-term former CM.

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She was invited to the swearing-in of BJP CMs Pushkar Dhami in Uttarakhand and Yogi Adityanath in Uttar Pradesh, but was missing from the party campaigns in these two states as well.

As the Rajasthan polls approach, the BJP leadership has been trying to mend fences with Raje, who has been out of the Modi-Shah circle of influence but remains the party’s tallest leader in Rajasthan.

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The attempt has gathered pace after the Karnataka polls, where the BJP’s loss was attributed to a large extent to the sidelining of its most bankable leader there, former CM B S Yediyurappa – Raje is in much the same league in Rajasthan.

In the last two meetings held by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Rajasthan, Raje has occupied pride of place.

Earlier this year, the BJP repositioned leaders who are seen as rivals of Raje – Satish Poonia was removed as state president while Gulab Chand Kataria was moved out as Assam Governor.

This followed three-four years of the party testing waters in Rajasthan sans Raje, propping up first-time MLA Poonia.

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Political Pulse Rajasthan Vasundhara Raje