THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A day after he took dissidents into confidence, BJP national president JP Nadda, who was in Kerala on a two-day visit, emphasised the importance of fighting the assembly elections united and the need for the state leadership to be accommodative to the demands from those within the party.
Sources told TNIE that Nadda presented a macro-level picture of the upcoming elections before the state office-bearers and in-charges of assembly constituencies during his address in Thrissur on Thursday. Prior to it, national general secretary (organisation), B L Santhosh, briefed the meeting about the micro-level organisational strategy to be adopted for the elections.
Nadda cited the analogy of an aircraft pilot attempting a take-off. Unless several technical factors are taken into account and addressed, the pilot will not be able to ensure a smooth takeoff, he told the meeting.The analogy is seen as Nadda’s indirect message to the state leadership to iron out various organisational issues before the elections.
Nadda had admitted on Wednesday that dissidence in the party was being looked into. Following his assurance, state vice-president Sobha Surendran, who has been keeping away from party functions, attended the party meeting and also the public meeting later in the day.
RSS speaks for Sobha to Nadda
During a joint core group meeting between the BJP and the RSS recently, the Sangh fountainhead had told the party to accommodate Sobha and other sidelined leaders. The RSS leadership is understood to have told the party that Sobha’s absence from the campaign scene during the local body elections had hampered the party’s prospects. The same demand was also conveyed to the BJP’s national leadership which asked Sobha to join party activities as a first step towards resolving outstanding issues.
Jacob Thomas joins BJP
Thrissur: Former DGP Jacob Thomas, who has been warming up to the BJP since retiring from civil service recently, has joined the party. BJP president
J P Nadda handed over the primary membership to him at BJP’s maha sammelan here.