NEW DELHI: The two-day BJP national executive, which kicks off in New Delhi on Sunday, is expected to start the countdown to the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. With the slide in economic growth and rising fuel prices partly taking the shine off the BJP’s reputation, the jamboree will seek to infuse hope that a healthy economy on a high-growth path would be back in place by early 2019. Over 1700 legislators will attend the meet.
To showcase the expansion of the party under BJP chief Amit Shah’s leadership, all party MLAs and MPs have been invited for the meet. “The BJP now has 1383 MLAs and 12 chief ministers, plus three deputy chief ministers. The party has strongly expanded under Shah’s leadership. But the BJP has to gain more strength to fundamentally change the direction of the country,” a senior BJP functionary said.
At least four states — Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka and Tripura — will be heading for elections in the near future. In about a year, the BJP will be defending its bastion in Madhya Pradesh, Chattisgarh and Rajasthan.
“Besides these seven high-stake states, the BJP will be staring at the 2019 Lok Sabha elections in the next 18 months. The conclave will set off the countdown for the BJP to stay on course to retain power at the Centre,” sources close to Shah said.
On Sunday morning, party general secretaries and other office-bearers will go into a huddle to draw up a robust defence against the Opposition onslaught on demonetisation and the stress in the economy.
In line with the BJP strategy to highlight Narendra Modi’s persona and his handling of relations with China, the national executive is poised to adopt a political resolution hailing the government’s achievements at the BRICS summit where Pakistan was pushed to a corner.