The State party brass gearing up for the two-day Uttarakhand trip of the BJP's national president Amit Shah beginning on September 19, Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat has convened a brain-storming meeting with the MlAs, RSS leaders and other senior party leaders at his residence on Wednesday evening.
Although officially its agenda is to have a debate on how to give fillip to the agricultural sector insiders said it is meant to check the pulse of the State BJP leaders ahead of the party president's visit.
Sources said Shah during the two-day trip would attend as many as 20 meetings, a figure that signifies how much importance he is lending to the State. It is learnt that he would hold such meetings in eight different places, including Madhuban Hotel, CM's residence, ONGC auditorium, RSS headquarters, survey auditorium and State party headquarters.
For this, the party is issuing separate invitation letters and entry passes to all the invitees. Sources further said the party president would meet all the party cells separately. While on the first day, he would hold 11 meetings nine meetings would be held on the second day.
An MlA said requesting anonymity that the main purpose of Shah's visit is to assess the performance of the party's government. "He should meet the leaders separately to learn how they are feeling as far as the style of functioning of the State Government is concerned. Unless he does so he would not be able to get the real feedback," he added.
Another insider said inter-party bickering coming out in the open with Ministers indulging in sabre-rattling among themselves, the party president has decided to meet the MlAs and the Ministers separately to gauge their feelings vis- a- vis the performance of the State Government and particularly of the CM.
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An MlA said the president should give just two minutes to each of the 58 legislators of the party, including the nominated member. "In case he does so it would require just 116 minutes, less than two hours," he said.
The State watchers said the CM is now much edgy. "He knows that the MlAs' demand for separate meetings with Shah means that they would vent their pent-up anger against the CM and those of his cronies, something that would not definitely augur well for the six-month old Ministry," says one of them.
By way of damage control in anticipation of the antipathy bursting out before the party president, the State Government is now embarking on the launch of a string of people-friendly steps. "For instance, the Government has released on Tuesday the budget for the108 ambulance service the sorry state of which has turned into a whip to lash the state government with. Many more such moves would unfold before the party president arrives to brush up the image of the State Government which is being criticised as an under- performer," said a party insider.