The Hindu : New Delhi News : No `big shot' in new BJP team

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Dec 25, 2004

New Delhi

New Delhi

No `big shot' in new BJP team

By Sujay Mehdudia

NEW DELHI, DEC. 24. The new Delhi Bharatiya Janata Party team of office-bearers clearly reflects that not only has the party president, Harsh Vardhan, been able to assert himself and establish the fact that he is the boss, but he has also in one stroke managed to wipe out all the bigwigs of Delhi -- Madan Lal Khurana, Sahib Singh Verma and Vijay Kumar Malhotra -- by not including their supporters in the new set-up.

It is learnt that the new team not only bears the stamp of approval of the Sangh Parivar and is indicative of the changing political scenario in the Delhi BJP, but has also been cleared by the BJP president, L.K. Advani. In a shrewd move Dr. Vardhan has also dropped the supporters of Mr. Khurana and Mr. Verma who were part of the previous team and has filled it with his own supporters particularly from East Delhi. Working in a low profile manner and not picking up cudgels with any of his party colleagues publicly, Dr. Vardhan has very cleverly managed to sideline these leaders who had ruled the party set-up for the past more than two decades in some form or the other. The decline of these leaders is clearly very evident in the new team with the BJP Central leadership now throwing its weight behind the new faces and trying to project an alternative leadership in Delhi.

However, the new team does not give representation to Jats as well as the Poorvanchal community that forms a big chunk of the electorate in Delhi. There is a heavy influence of the Vaish community in the new team with the top posts going to this community represented by Dr. Vardhan. The sole Poorvanchal leader, Lal Bihari Tiwari, also considered close to Mr. Khurana, has also been shown the door. It is another matter that despite representing the East Delhi constituency for three consecutive times, Mr. Tiwari failed to carve out a niche for himself among this community.

Similarly, as per the BJP constitution, the team of office-bearers should have at least two representatives from the SC community. However, in the new team only youth leader, Yogesh Chandolia, has been included. The supporters of Mr. Verma also do not find any place in the new team indicating his declining influence and the changing preference of the party leadership. It is learnt that a large number of leaders had opposed the inclusion of Tughlakabad MLA, Ramesh Bidhuri, in the new team in view of his unruly behaviour with the party workers and complaints by Mr. Verma that the legislator had worked against him in the Lok Sabha polls. However, Rohini Councillor Vijender Kumar Gupta has managed to retain his place in the new team as secretary in view of his outstanding performance in the Municipal Corporation of Delhi. Mr. Gupta has the potential to raise important issues forcefully and could be utilised by the party in a better manner. The party is still to name the new general secretary (organisation) as the veteran Pawan Kumar has been relieved of this charge but continues to be a general secretary.

The new team is: Ram Bhaj, S.S. Bajwa, Ramesh Bidhuri, Neera Shastri, Abdul Rashid (vice-presidents); Pawan Sharma and Alok Kumar (general secretaries); Vijender Kumar Gupta, Sahib Singh Verma, Yogender Chandolia, Satya Joshi, Suraj Bhan Pande (secretaries), Shyam Lal Garg (treasurer) and Udaya Sharma (office secretary).

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