Shah’s elevation to the top post will set into motion generational change in the 33-year-old party.
NEW DELHI: A month after the Narendra Modi Government assumed charge, with most of the party office-bearers including its president Rajnath Singh joining the Union Cabinet, the Bharatiya Janata Party is set to choose its new chief.
The ruling party has called a meeting of its highest decision-making body, parliamentary board, on Wednesday, where a decision to appoint Amit Shah as the Singh’s successor is likely to be taken.
Sources said that even the BJP’s ideological mentor, the RSS, has veered around to endorse Shah’s name and even allowed two of its key leaders - Ram Madhav and Shiv Prakash - to work with the BJP.
Madhav is likely to replace Ram Lal, also an RSS leader, as BJP’s general secretary (organisation). The RSS is currently having its annual meeting in Mohankheda, Madhya Pradesh, to put a stamp on Shah’s name.
Architect of BJP's Win
Shah, a confidant of Modi, became the frontrunner for the post after the party won an unprecedented 71 seats, while two won by its allies, out of the 80 Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh. Shah was in charge of party affairs in UP.
Sources said Shah will get to choose his new team which will remain in place till 2015, after which he may have to seek re-endorsement according to the party constitution. As Rajnath Singh’s tenure is till 2015, Shah will complete this tenure first.
After from choosing a younger team, Shah will have a say in deciding state party chiefs and chief ministerial candidates of the upcoming Assembly elections in Haryana, Maharashtra, this year, while in Jammu and Kashmir, Jharkhand and Bihar next year.
Shah, who is currently the party general secretary, was last week allotted Z plus security.
Meanwhile, a day before he steps down as the BJP chief and hands over the baton to Amit Shah, Rajnath Singh on Tuesday evening appointed Satish Upadhyaya president of the party’s New Delhi unit, replacing Dr Harshvardhan who has joined the Union Cabinet.