Koderma MP, Annapurna Devi, who took oath as Minister of State in Prime Minister Narendra Modi Cabinet last month received a rousing welcome on her maiden visit to Ranchi after being inducted in Modi’s Cabinet. The BJP Mahanagar unit welcomed Annapurna at 17 places after she entered Ranchi enroute to BJP headquarter in Harmu. At Booty More, BJP MP Sanjay Seth, former Minister and Ranchi MLA CP Singh, Kanke MLA Samri Lal and others welcomed Annapurna at Shivaji Chowk. At Shivaji Chowk the Union Minister garlanded the statue of Shivaji Maharaj. At the BJP office senior state BJP welcomed her.
Annapurna on Monday launched her Jan Samvad Yatra from Koderma passing through Barhi, Carhi, Hazaribagh, Ramgarh and other places.
Annapurna Devi is the second Lok Sabha member from the State to have joined the Union Cbinet after Tribal Affairs Minister Arjun Munda. Union Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi is also a member of Rajya Sabha from Jharkhand. Appointment of Devi, who belongs to the OBC (other backward classes) category, in the Union cabinet from the State is significant, as she is a first time Member of Parliament and also a new entrant into the BJP. BJP sources said that with elevation of Annapurna as Union Minister the saffron party is eyeing the OBC vote bank which plays a crucial role in Koderma, Hazaribagh, Ramgarh, Bokaro, Giridih, Dhanbad districts.
Apart from projecting Annapurna as OBC leader, the Saffron party will also try to encash the OBC bill passed in Parliament last week. OBC bill—the key Constitutional amendment bill that proposes to restore the power of states and Union Territories to make their own OBC lists for the purpose of reservation in jobs and educational institutes.
Annapurna will carry forward her Jan Samvad Yatra on Wednesday reaching out to people at Dhanbad, Giridih and other districts.
Meanwhile, in another development the state BJP has decided to intensify its campaign against the State government. This decision was taken in a meeting of the party's state office bearers, district heads, district in-charges, state presidents of all morchas held at the state office on Tuesday.