The BJP appointed Mohan Lal Badri, a veteran organisational leader with ties to the RSS, as its state unit chief in an effort to strengthen its support base in Haryana ahead of state assembly elections due later this year.
The Haryana Assembly elections are scheduled to be held in October this year.
BJP national general secretary Arun Singh issued Badri’s appointment letter after party president JP Nadda approved his nomination.
Badri succeeds Nayab Saini, who has been both the state chief minister and Haryana BJP leader since he took over as chief minister from Manohar Lal Khattar on March 12 this year.
Who is Mohan Lal Badri?
Mohan Lal Badri, 61, is the state assembly member from Rai constituency and has been an active member of the RSS since 1989. He is also considered the representative of the Brahmin wing of the BJP in the state.
Badri was first elected to the state Assembly from Rai constituency in 2019. He has a wealth of experience having served as the BJP’s Sonipat district president and later as the party’s general secretary.
Although Badri lost the recent Lok Sabha elections to his rival Satpal Brahamchari from the Indian National Congress by 21,816 votes, the BJP again expressed confidence in him.
Badri is known to be close to both former Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar and current Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini. Soon after Badri was appointed BJP chief in Haryana, Saini contacted X to congratulate him: “I would like to wholeheartedly congratulate Mohan Lal Baroli on his appointment as Bharatiya Janata Party chief in Haryana. I am confident that under your leadership, organisational work in Haryana will take a new turn and a BJP government will be formed for the third time as well.”
BJP’s attempt to strike a balance
In the run-up to the Haryana elections, the BJP is keen to get its caste arithmetic right. By appointing a Brahmin like Badri as party leader, and putting an OBC chief minister and a Jat leader, Satish Punia, as state in-charge, the BJP is trying to strike a caste balance.
With issues like Agniveru and the farmers’ protests looming, getting the caste balance right is crucial for the BJP.
The upcoming state elections will be a test for Badri, especially since the BJP struggled in the recent Lok Sabha elections, winning only five of the state’s 10 constituencies.
