LUCKNOW: With speculations rife about Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya playing a crucial role in the selection of the new BJP state chief, his tweet posted on Sunday has created flutters in the political circles of UP.
“Party organisation is bigger than the government,” Maurya tweeted in Hindi, leaving many to believe that he could be a potential name to head the party in UP.
The BJP high command is believed to be in the process of selecting the state chief after Swatantra Dev Singh sent his resignation to party president JP Nadda on July 27.
It was only last week that Maurya had met Nadda. While the BJP leaders remain tight-lipped, sources say the party is weighing its options after considering caste equations of various party leaders for the key seat.
On Sunday, BJP’s newly-appointed state secretary, organisation, Dharampal Singh Saini held a meeting of office bearers of western UP and Brij regions in Ghaziabad.
Both the deputy CMs Keshav Maurya and Brajesh Pathak — along with Swatantra Dev Singh attended the meeting, after which Maurya posted the cryptic tweet.
Maurya had led the party into 2017 state assembly elections when the BJP stormed to power winning 312 seats on its own.
Maurya has emerged as a key OBC face in the party’s plan to consolidate the non-Yadav OBC vote bank in UP.
The BJP has reiterated its OBC narrative through the appointment of Saini, an OBC, as the new state general secretary, the organisation.
Among the OBC leaders being considered for the post of UP BJP president are Union minister of state for cooperation, BL Verma, a Lodh; and UP minister Bhupendra Chaudhary, who is a Jat.