LUCKNOW: Booth level workers are likely play definitive role in selection of ruling BJP candidates for the 2022 Uttar Pradesh assembly elections.
According to sources in the saffron party's state unit, the workers' committees, which comprise of grassroot BJP workers, will have a decisive sway in selection of candidates in the next assembly polls which are just around nine months away.
The first step of the exercise of candidates selection will happen in over next two months, when the performance reports of each individual sitting legislator will be prepared. The performance reports will be prepared based on the feedback about individual legislator's performance from independent agencies, party organisation and most importantly booth level party workers.
The booth level committees will also list the best alternative candidate in place of a non-performer sitting MLAs. Based on feedback about every legislator, the sitting MLAs will be graded as Excellent, Good and Average.
Those, who will graded as Excellent will not only be fielded again by the party in 2022 polls, but also act as local star campaigners on seats of neighborhood. Those graded as good will also be repeated, but only stay confined to their individual seats, while those graded as average will be asked to perform in six months or perish," a senior BJP organisation leader told The New Indian Express.
According to informed sources, the idea to give more power to booth level party workers in candidate selection isn't only aimed at their empowerment, but also to address the discontent prevailing among grassroot workers over the candidate selection in the recently concluded panchayat polls.
Holding panchayat polls just 10-12 months before the assembly polls has divided the party workers on Ground Zero on caste and other lines. Rendering them more power in selecting candidates for 2022 polls is likely to address the discontent among them and motivate them to work together.
Once the legislators are aware that booth level workers will have considerable clout in candidate selection, then they will work more closely with the party's last possible workers in the coming months.
In the 2017 assembly polls, the saffron party had returned to power after a decade and half with a monstrous 312 seats majority, but internal surveys ahead of next polls don't paint a rosy picture for the ruling party in the next elections
The recent visits of party's in-charge for the state Radha Mohan Singh and national organisation general secretary BL Santosh have marked the beginning of party's organisation leaders from centre and master strategists spadework on ground in the politically crucial state.