JP Nadda will visit cadre in states, push for growth

New Delhi: Notwithstanding the BJP’s massive victory in the recent Lok Sabha polls, when it bagged 303 parliamentary seats across the country, the ruling party will continue with its ambitious growth plans. The new working president, Mr J.P. Nadda, is all set to embark on a nationwide tour soon to visit BJP state units and interact with the party cadre.

Just like BJP president Amit Shah, now also Union home minister, had embarked on a similar exercise in 2017 to assess the “real organisational strength” of the party’s state units and take corrective measures ahead of the 2019 elections, Mr Nadda will soon start visiting state units and interact with party leaders and the cadre. It may be recalled that Mr Shah recently reiterated his earlier remark in 2014 that the BJP had still not reached its peak in terms of electoral performance, even after it won 303 seats and scored more than 50 per cent voteshare in nearly 220 seats. Mr Shah had earlier said the BJP’s golden era will arrive when it rules from panchayat to Assemblies across the nation and Parliament. Mr Shah’s exercise, BJP leaders believe, had a major impact on the party’s performance in the Lok Sabha polls.

Mr Nadda, sources said, held a meeting with the central team members recently after being appointed working president, and discussed the issue with them. The central team has been asked to finalise a plan for his visits to the state units. States where Assembly polls are due by the end of this year will be the primary focus. Mr Nadda’s nationwide tour , sources
said, will have a special focus on the Northeast, and southern states like Kerala where the party did not perform as per its expectations.

Ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, Mr Shah had visited state units for a “reality check” of the party’s organisational strength and also to resolve issues that were troubling it. In some states, the BJP was facing massive factionalism and nepotism, and in others leaders were “inaccessible” to the workers and cadre. The party systematically boosted its organisational base and support base, with a focus on a minimum of 15 members in all 1.5 lakh-plus booths across the country. As part of its expansion drive, the BJP plans to launch its membership drive to increase its members by 20 per cent. The party had enrolled over 11 crore members the last time it conducted this drive.