Gujarat’s representation in the saffron brigade at national level is constantly increasing ahead of lok Sabha elections to be held in May this year. Over two dozen State BJP cadres have been placed in key positions in the BJP as well as its morchas and cells.
latest addition in the list is Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi’s handpicked Harsh Sanghvi — the youngest BJP MlA in Gujarat elected from Majura constituency in Surat.
The BJP high command has appointed young Sanghvi, who turned 29 on January 9 as general secretary of Bharatiya Janata Party Yuva Morcha (BJYM). Another interesting appointment in the BJYM from Gujarat was Madhukeshwar Desai as national vice-president. Madhukeshwar is grandson of former Prime Minister Morarji Desai. Coincidentally, both Sanghvi and Desai hail from South Gujarat region. Though, Desai has settled in Banglore. Moreover, Surat MP Darshana Jardosh is also given responsibility as general secretary of Mahila Morcha. Smriti Irani who was elected from Gujarat in Rajya Sabha is also vice-president of the BJP’s Mahila Morcha as well as in-charge of Goa State.
Just a couple of months back appointment of Asifa Khan in the national executive of the BJP Minority Morcha became a subject of discussion in the political arena. The suave and Convent educated Asifa belongs to Bharuch town, a place from where Ahmed Patel -- political secretary to Congress chief Sonia Gandhi -- belongs. The other national executive members of Minority Morcha from the State are Imtiyazkhan Pathan, Sajjad Hira and Jabiha Bhana.
If a senior State BJP leader has to be believed, most of the national appointments in the saffron brigade from Gujarat were made after April 2013, when speculation on Narendra Modi’s coronation as BJP’s prime ministerial candidate was at its peak. According to him in almost all the national appointments from the State, Modi’s opinion mattered a lot. “Before the rise of Gujarat Chief Minister on national platform within the BJP, representation from Gujarat was almost negligible,” he added.
Among the all appointments, the most important is that of Modi’s close aide Amit Shah as BJP’s general secretary as well as in-charge of India’s biggest State - Uttar Pradesh, from where Modi is likely to fight lok Sabha election. Besides, three senior Ministers in Modi Cabinet — including Anandiben Patel, Nitin Patel and Bhupendrasinh Chudasama —former Rajya Sabha member Vijay Rupani, MlA from North Gujarat Shanker Chaudhary and Rajya Sabha member Parshotam Rupala have got the place as permanent invitees to the national executive committee of the saffron brigade. In fact, Rupala is also made national in-charge of Kishan Morcha.
Young BJP leaders Amit Thaker, Ajay Choksi, Jayantilal Barot and Paritosh Vyas have been appointed as in-charge of BJP’s overseas cell, co-convener of urban local bodies’ cell, co-convener of senior citizen’s cell, and co-convener of Samvad Cell respectively.