BJP chief’s election very soon, states told to propose candidates: Chugh

THE TRIBUNE INTERVIEW

The ruling BJP on Sunday said the election for the post of party’s national president would take place very soon and state units would be asked to propose a candidate by way of resolutions.

In an exclusive interview to The Tribune on Sunday, BJP national general secretary Tarun Chugh said the process for the election of BJP’s national president has taken long in the past also as it involves a democratic exercise from the booth to the national level and is “not about 10, Janpath, nominating a leader.”

“The BJP is not a party of father-son or mother-son or brother-sister. It is a cadre-based party with internal democracy. The BJP organisational election is held from the booth to the national president level. Currently, internal elections are underway across the party’s 10.55 lakh booths, 17,000-odd mandals and 1,029 districts. Elections in some state units have concluded and some will happen. Very soon, the BJP national presidential election will also be held,” Chugh said.

He said once 50 per cent units across all levels of BJP organisation — from booth to states — complete their internal elections, states would be asked to send resolutions about the national president.

“After state-level polls, resolutions for the new chief will come to our election in-charge K Laxman. In the BJP, the tradition has been to send one name through resolutions,” said Chugh.

The BJP constitution says the national chief’s election can take place once half of the party’s state and UT units elect their chiefs and national council members who then form the electoral college for the poll of the BJP president.

As of today, 13 state and UT units of BJP have completed the election process and 14, including key states like Himachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Haryana, UP, are pending.

On a direct query about why BJP chief’s poll has been delayed beyond the previously decided January schedule, Chugh said different elections across states had led to the delay.

“There is no specific reason for the delay except that the BJP organisational election has to happen across India at booth, mandal, district, state and national level. But simultaneously, we have also seen panchayat, zila parishad, block samiti, local body and other elections in state after state. Since the same BJP cadre has to work in both these segments, internal party poll gets affected.

“Even in the past, internal polls have taken a long time to conclude because in our party, 10 Janpath does not take the decision. Party cadres do,” said Chugh in a swipe at the Congress’ Gandhi family.

Tarun Chugh, who hails from Amritsar, also said that the hitherto-stalled BJP organisational process in Punjab had now started.

Asked if the Punjab BJP would get a new president and incumbent Sunil Jakhar would be replaced, the BJP leader said, “Certainly, within the time frame of the party poll, we will complete this task. The party has a system whereby it will give a new chief. That can be anybody.”

Importantly, in many states, the incumbent chief has been re-elected as president.

Chugh attributed slack membership in Punjab to a series of elections in the state from Lok Sabha byelection, Assembly byelection, panchayat to municipal corporation elections. “All this affected the party work in Punjab. Since our first priority is these elections, the membership drive in Punjab was delayed but we have achieved our targets now and internal elections have begun,” he said.

Signalling a go-solo strategy in Punjab, Chugh, part of several key BJP strategy groups nationally, said the BJP was proceeding on its own strength in Punjab. “The people of Punjab have seen the Congress. They have now also seen AAP which has put the state in reverse gear. People now realise that only a decisive, dynamic government under Prime Minister Narendra Modi can rescue the state from the clutches of drugs, financial mismanagement, farming challenges, stalled development and invisible law and order.”

Chugh said a “visionless AAP government had done nothing in 36 months and drug, mining, cable and illicit liquor mafia is thriving in Punjab.”

On a query about the final membership of BJP after the recent membership drive, Chugh said the party had made 14 crore members. “The BJP renews memberships every three years. The previous membership was 18 crore which reflected the numbers for two tenures, that is six years. This time, we have achieved 14 crore memberships, the highest-ever in a single tenure. This is over and above the 11 crore target.”

At the commencement of the BJP membership drive last year, the party had said it was aiming for 20 crore members nationally.