The Hindu : New Delhi News : Harsh Vardhan set to get a third term

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Wednesday, Nov 07, 2007
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New Delhi

Harsh Vardhan set to get a third term

Gaurav Vivek Bhatnagar

Harsh Vardhan

NEW DELHI: Delhi Bharatiya Janata Party president Harsh Vardhan is all set to get a record third term in office. A formal announcement is expected in the next few days.

It is reliably learnt that the party’s national leadership is inclined to giving a third consecutive term to Dr. Vardhan as he is still the “most suitable” person for the post in Delhi. Even though the BJP would be violating its new constitutional provision that has come into force this year and clearly lays down that the term of president would be for three years and no one would get a second term, the party is prepared to make an exception in the case of Dr. Vardhan as it goes into an election year.

Sources in the party said former Union Minister Vijay Goel and Leader of the Opposition in the Delhi Assembly Jagdish Mukhi were the other two contenders for the post, but a decision on Dr. Vardhan was conveyed to some Delhi leaders on Sunday.

BJP president Rajnath Singh, who had been backing Mr. Goel’s candidature despite stiff opposition from South Delhi MP Vijay Kumar Malhotra, is now understood to have acknowledged that Dr. Vardhan would be best suited for the job at hand. The final decision on the name of the Delhi BJP president would have to be taken jointly by Mr. Singh, Prof. Malhotra, senior leader Sushma Swaraj -- who incidentally was backing Prof. Mukhi, Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh in charge of Delhi Ramesh Prakash, and the BJP general secretary in charge of Delhi Thawar Chand Gehlot.

While Dr. Vardhan’s image as an efficient, honest and hard-working leader working through consensus politics has held him in good stead and elevated his stature in the party, it has also raised questions about there being a “leadership vacuum” in Delhi. What is also being asked is if there was a need for organisation polls in Delhi if the leadership issue was to be settled like this. The development has to some extent left the party divided as it heads for the next Delhi Assembly elections.

But most BJP workers are happy that they would soon have a decision on the Delhi president.

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