Uttar Pradesh Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chief Bhupendra Singh Chaudhary met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday and is likely to have briefed him on a host of issues relating to the party’s organisational matters.
New Delhi: Following its crushing defeat in the recent Lok Sabha elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party is preparing for a major reshuffle in the state of Uttar Pradesh. State leader Bhupendra Chaudhary took responsibility for the party’s poor performance and announced his resignation during a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Delhi today.
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Union Home Minister Amit Shah arrived at the Prime Minister’s Office to discuss the next steps. NDTV reported that Uttar Pradesh BJP leader Bhupendra Singh Chaudhary met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday and is likely to have briefed him on a host of issues relating to the party’s organisational issues in the politically crucial state.
Chaudhary and the state’s Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya met BJP national president JP Nadda separately on Tuesday, amid growing discord within the party following its shock defeat to the Socialist Party-Congress combine in the state assembly elections.
What makes the BJP different in Uttar Pradesh?
The differences between Maurya and Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath are widely known within the party, and his comment at a state party meeting that “the organisation is always bigger than the government and no one can be bigger than the organisation” was seen by many political commentators as a message to the priest-politicians.
Making the remarks in the presence of Adityanath and Nadda, the chief minister blamed the party’s election defeat in the state on “overconfidence” and suggested it had failed to effectively counter the opposition Bloc India’s election campaign.
With senior party leaders speaking to Maurya and Chaudhary, who are said to have calm and objective views, the party appears to be taking steps to counter the re-emergence of opposition in the state, which has played a crucial role in the BJP’s emergence as a major force in the country since the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.
Top BJP leader criticises PM Yogi?
The deputy chief minister further stirred up a furor on Wednesday when he posted a comment from his office account saying, “The organization is bigger than the government…” Several senior BJP leaders in the state, including some who lost in the state assembly elections, have in private conversations criticised the chief minister’s performance and said it was one of the reasons for their defeat. But Adityanath is seen by his supporters as a popular chief minister who has aggressively promoted the party’s Hindutva agenda and maintained a strong law and order posture.
Party leaders acknowledged that the comments made by several leaders in the state had tarnished the party’s image as a disciplined party, but added that it was expected as they needed to vent their emotions after suffering an unexpected defeat.
According to reports, the BJP’s top priority now is to perform well in the state assembly by-elections and win all 10 seats in the state. The Election Commission is expected to announce the date for the elections soon.
The BJP-led NDA and the Samajwadi Party won five seats each. In the recent Lok Sabha elections, the SP-BJP Congress coalition won 43 of the state’s 80 Lok Sabha seats, while the BJP-led NDA won 36. The NDA had won 64 seats in 2019.
(With input from relevant agencies)
Published: July 17, 2024 5:53 PM IST
Updated: July 17, 2024 6:04 PM IST
