BJP names 10 women, six minority leaders to new national team
The BJP on Monday, August 17, named 10 women, including former Union minister Smriti Irani, and six leaders from minority communities to its newly constituted national team under party president Nitin Nabin, describing the lineup as a blend of administrative experience, youthfulness, geographic diversity and social inclusion.
Irani has been made national general secretary. Former Rajasthan chief minister Vasundhara Raje Scindia, former Union minister D. Purandeshwari and ex-National Commission for Women chief Rekha Verma have been appointed vice-presidents.
Kavita Patidar and Sangeeta Yadav have been named national secretaries, Roop Kumari Choudhary has been appointed president of the BJP's Mahila Morcha, and Priti Gandhi has been made a social media co-convenor.
The party said the national office includes one Sikh member, two Christian members, and one member each from the Muslim, Jain and Parsi communities to ensure every major faith is represented.
Former Aligarh Muslim University vice chancellor Prof Tariq Mansoor has been appointed national vice president, and Kunwar Basit Ali has been made president of the Minority Morcha.
Anil Antony, son of Congress veteran A.K. Antony, has been retained as a national secretary, while former Punjab finance minister Manpreet Singh Badal has been appointed BJP national vice-president.
The party said the appointments draw representation from 23 states and Union territories, which it said would give the incoming national president's executive team a wide awareness of the country's regional diversity.
The BJP said special focus had been placed on the North-East, with three regional leaders from Tripura, Assam and Nagaland inducted and a dedicated North-East Coordination Cell, to be headed by Sambit Patra, continuing its work.
The committee also includes four tribal representatives from West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and the North-East, two of them women, and three Scheduled Caste representatives from Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Madhya Pradesh.
(Inputs from PTI)
