BJP speeds up process to elect its new national President

New Delhi: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has intensified its internal election process, paving the way for the selection of its next national president. As part of the procedure, state-level party presidents are being elected in rapid succession, with nominations in five major states filed Monday and several more lined up over the coming days.

On June 30, nominations for state BJP presidents were filed in Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Uttarakhand, and Himachal Pradesh. The official announcements of the new state presidents in these five states are expected on July 1. This move is part of a broader organizational reshuffle aimed at completing the groundwork before the national president's election.

In Uttarakhand, current state president Mahendra Bhatt has filed his nomination for a second term. Himachal Pradesh also sees a likely continuation, with incumbent Rajiv Bindal submitting his nomination for re-election. In the southern states, PVN Madhav has filed his papers for Andhra Pradesh, while Ramachandra Rao has been nominated in Telangana. In Maharashtra, acting president Ravi Chauhan has formally entered the race and is expected to be confirmed.

Meanwhile, the BJP has already finalized leadership in two Union Territories. Dr. K. Beichhua has taken over as the new BJP president in Mizoram, and Deepi Ramalingam has been elected as the party’s president in Puducherry.

Looking ahead, the nomination process will continue on July 1 in four additional regions, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal, Daman and Diu, and Ladakh. The names of new state presidents from these areas will be declared on July 2.

This flurry of organizational activity is part of a larger strategy. Over the past five months, BJP has successfully completed state president elections in 14 states. With the expected announcement of 11 more over the next two days, the party will have updated its leadership in at least 25 out of its 36 organizational regions.

According to party norms, the national presidential election cannot commence until more than half of the state-level presidents have been elected, a threshold that equates to leadership in at least 19 states. Alongside the state presidents, members of the BJP National Council are also elected, and both groups play a crucial role in voting for the party’s national president.

In addition to the 25 states where elections are either complete or underway, the BJP is expected to announce state presidents in a few more key regions, including Haryana and Delhi, in the days ahead. Decisions on the leadership in Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Karnataka, and Punjab are still pending.

Sources suggest that the much-anticipated election of the BJP’s national president is likely to be concluded by mid-July, setting the stage for the party’s next phase of leadership ahead of crucial political battles in the coming months.