LUCKNOW: BJP national president Nitin Nabin’s new team announced on Monday comprises eight members from Uttar Pradesh, including three women, with Smriti Irani returning to the party’s top organisational leadership as the national general secretary.
Six leaders from UP are in the team, while presidents of OBC and Minority Morchas are also from the state. Political experts said the appointments were made keeping the 2027 Assembly elections in mind.
UP has the highest representation of women in the national team, with Irani, Rekha Verma and Sangeeta Yadav. There are two Muslim leaders, both from UP’s Pasmanda Muslim community—former Aligarh Muslim University Vice-Chancellor Dr Tariq Mansoor and National Minority Morcha president Kunwar Basit Ali. Mansoor has been reappointed national vice-president, while Basit Ali has moved from the UP BJP Minority Morcha to the national level.
The state’s representation also reflects caste and community equations. It includes Brahmin leader Harish Dwivedi, Parsi leader Irani, SC leader Dr Bhola Singh, the three-term MP from the Bulandshahr reserved constituency, and three OBC leaders — Verma, Yadav and Amarpal Maurya. Maurya has been appointed president of the party’s OBC Morcha.
The formation of the team had been pending since Nabin took over as BJP national president seven months ago. With the 2027 polls approaching, UP is crucial for the BJP. The state has 403 Assembly seats, the largest legislative assembly in the country, and sends 80 MPs to the Lok Sabha.
The presence of UP leaders in the national organisation is being seen as a direct attempt to shape the BJP’s Assembly election strategy. Regional and social equations are believed to have influenced the appointments. Dwivedi’s reappointment as national general secretary and Verma’s as national vice-president are seen as balancing organisational experience with electoral requirements.
Irani’s return appears driven by the party’s strategy for the UP polls. She had remained outside the central organisational structure after losing the 2024 Lok Sabha election from Amethi to Congress’s KL Sharma. Her return alongside Sunil Bansal, Vinod Tawde, Biplab Kumar Deb and Satish Poonia is significant.
Religious diversity
The party said that to ensure that every major faith in India is respected and accommodated, the national office has given place to one Sikh member, two Christians, two Muslims and one member each from the Jain and Parsi communities.
