Former Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje , under whose stewardship the BJP lost the last Assembly polls in Rajasthan, met BJP President J P Nadda on Tuesday to discuss ways to galvanize the party machinery in the State for the Assembly elections , next year.
Raje has been on a meeting spree in the last fortnight and had interactions with the top leaders including Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
She has been at loggerheads with state Chief Satish poonia and Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, who also hails from Rajasthan .
Raje, who has floated her own ‘support forum’ in the state and launched ‘Raje Yatra’, had in the past vetoed Shekhawat’s bid to be the state president. The infighting in the state has often turned visibly bitter and even ugly.
After lying low for the last several years, Raje, currently BJP Vice President, has suddenly become active and separately met Modi last Thursday. After meeting Modi, Raje had a long meeting with Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.
She flew to Dehradun in a helicopter to attend the swearing-in-ceremony of Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami and met a number of BJP leaders. She also attended the oath taking ceremony of Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath.
The former Chief Minister, who had led BJP to power twice, is known to have her way and attracted criticism for her style of functioning carrying a dedicated band of followers including the long-time ex-minister Rajendra Singh Rathore.
Nadda has often warned BJP state leaders to project a “united face” saying that “ekla chalo’ policy would not work and “not tolerated" by the leadership.
Sources said Nadda discussed with Raje the party's affairs in Rajasthan and took feedback from her. Raje, a scion of royal family, is still a force to reckon with that the central leadership can not ignore for want of an alternative popular face in the state.
A rally she had organised in the state on her birthday on March 8 drew a big crowd and was also attended by a number of party leaders in what was seen as her show of strength.
Raje, who is the aunt of Jyotiraditya Scidia, had welcomed her nephew when he had joined the BJP from the Congress saying Vijaya Raje Scindia (her mother) “ if alive would have been elated” that Jyotiraditya “put nation first” (by joining the BJP).