Some senior district leaders of Bharatiya Janata Party and activists have submitted a memorandum to the party’s national president Amit Shah- a copy of which was forwarded to the Prime Minister, Uttarakhand Chief Minister and the State party chief- in which they expressed their worry over the trend of inducting outsiders into the party during the time of election. Most of the leaders/workers who signed the memorandum are known to be associated with the party even during the Jan Sangh days. They warned the party leaders against inducting dubious characters who are eager to join the ruling party to stave off inquiries into the financial irregularities they are supposed to be involved in. Observers say that the target of the veteran saffron leaders/workers is the controversial Pauri municipal council president who was recently stripped of his financial power by the State Government on the basis of the probe report sent by Garhwal commissioner and the district magistrate.
The district party insiders say that speculation is swirling in the party circles that the graft-tainted civic body president might be given a BJP ticket during the upcoming civic body election if the seat he contests from remains ‘general’ and in case it is reserved for the woman candidates his wife who has applied for VRS from the job she is doing might be given the ruling party ticket. “The veteran leaders/workers who sacrificed the better part of their lives in building the party in the district brick by brick are worried over the buzz going on in the district party circles. They believe that such moves if the party leadership takes to win elections would erode the party’s ideological base. We are all aware of the initiatives being taken by some ministers and leaders to rope in the graft-tainted leader in the party in the run-up to the civic body election. It would be suicidal as far as the ideological identity of the party is concerned,” said a district BJP insider.
Among those who signed the memorandum are Vinod Sachdev, Harish Sadana, Jaspal Singh Negi, Matbar Singh Negi, Bhagwan Verma and Chandi Prasad.
They appealed to Amit Shah to make it clear to the party brass not to do anything that might demoralize the party rank and file ahead of the high- stake 2019 general election.
The senior BJP leaders say that if the municipal council president is given the party ticket, then the party will not only have to face the dissatisfaction of public but also have to accept the collective resignation of the party workers.