The BJP may announce its new national president within two weeks, as organizational elections are completed in 12 states. To elect the president, elections must occur in 50% of states, with further elections necessary in at least six more states. The party is expediting this process in states facing assembly elections next year. Candidates must be broadly acceptable, including to the RSS, and consider factors like caste, language, and support in Uttar Pradesh. Current president Mr. Nadda’s tenure, extended until June 2024, complicates the process as the party seeks consensus amid dissent in some states.
New Delhi:
Sources suggest that the announcement of the next BJP chief could happen within the next fortnight, as the party has completed its organizational elections in 12 states. It is anticipated that the national president will be revealed before March 15, which marks the beginning of an inauspicious period in the Hindu calendar.
In order to elect the BJP president, organizational elections must be held in at least 50 percent of the states. This is preceded by elections at the booth, mandal, and district levels.
Currently, elections have only been completed in 12 out of 36 states. Thus, elections for unit leaders in at least six more states are necessary. The BJP is prioritizing this process in states facing assembly elections next year, including Tamil Nadu, Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Assam, and Gujarat. No changes are expected in Bihar, where elections will be held by the end of the year.
State in-charges have already been prompted to submit names of potential candidates for the top position.
Although speculation is widespread, and considering the BJP’s history of unexpected decisions, sources advise against finalizing a name at this early stage.
What is widely agreed upon is that the chosen candidate must be broadly acceptable, including to the BJP’s ideological partner, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), and should embody the party’s organizational values.
The party is also likely to concentrate on factors such as caste combinations, the north-south divide regarding language issues and delimitation, and, most importantly, the necessity to strengthen its support base in Uttar Pradesh, especially following setbacks in the Lok Sabha polls which resulted in the loss of a single-handed majority.
Mr. Nadda assumed the party’s responsibilities in 2019 as its working president. He was unanimously elected as the national president in January 2020, succeeding the current Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
His term has been extended until June 2024 in light of the upcoming Lok Sabha election, and with his entry into the government, the party is exploring potential successors.
However, the process has been gradual, as party leaders aim to reach a consensus on this matter.
This need for consensus applies at the state level as well, where finding agreement has proven challenging in some regions due to dissent regarding the candidate selection.