by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group
Special report
Amit Shah keen to demit party post early
J P Nadda hot favourite as BJP Chief
Harish Gupta
New Delhi, June 11
Union Home Ministry and BJP president Amit Shah is understood to have firmly conveyed to demit the office of party chief at the earliest.
Highly placed sources in the BJP say that Amit Shah has expressed the desire to “hang his boots as party chief” and focus on the task assigned to him by “Modiji” in the government.
Contrary to reports appearing in a section of the media that Amit Shah may continue to hold the twin posts until the Assembly polls in Maharashtra, Haryana and Jharkhand, a senior party functionary said, Adhyakshji wants the new regime to take charge and in place well before the states' polls.
"The uncertainty cannot be allowed to continue and it will not help anyone”, Amit Shah is reported to have told his close confidants who played a key role in party's big win in UP, West Bengal, Maharashtra and other states.
These sources also indicated that former Union Health Minister J P Nadda was in the reckoning for the post of the party president way back in 2017 when the then Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar was sent to Goa as Chief Minister. There was a move then to induct Amit Shah into the government then. But somehow the plan could not take shape. After the big win, J P Nadda is the natural successor to Amit Shah. Secondly, Nadda's record as a minister has been unblemished and he established his credentials by winning as many as 62 out of 80 Lok Sabha seats in UP in such adverse circumstances. Thirdly, Nadda is a die-hard RSS swayamsewak and came through the ABVP route.
In fact, there are no contenders for the post and even BJP general secretary and Rajya Sabha MP Bhupendra Yadav is not in the reckoning except in a section of the media. ion. Though he has shown tremendous prowess and impressed the leadership, it is early days for such a coveted post.
Ends
