Vasundhara Raje keen to hold post as it would give her a say in Rajasthan’s candidate selection for 2019, high command worried it could affect party prospects.
New Delhi: Former Rajasthan chief minister Vasundhara Raje might have lost the assembly elections but is not inclined to let go of her grip on the BJP’s affairs in the state.
She has conveyed to the central party leadership her desire to be appointed as the state BJP president, a post that would give her a big say in the selection of party candidates for the Lok Sabha elections, a Union minister involved in Rajasthan affairs has told ThePrint.
Another BJP functionary confirmed it, adding that Raje would prefer the state BJP president’s post to that of the leader of the opposition in the state assembly. This has put the central BJP leadership in a quandary as there is a belief that her refusal to let the leadership have a decisive say in the ticket distribution process and election management had led to the party’s defeat in the assembly election.
The BJP leadership in Delhi is not inclined to let her run the show in the Lok Sabha elections in Rajasthan, a state where the BJP won all 25 seats on offer in 2014.
The minister quoted above told ThePrint that Raje had become very active in the party and was holding meetings with leaders after the assembly elections, signalling her intent to continue her grip on the state unit of the BJP even after her defeat.
Ashok Parnami, former BJP Rajasthan chief who is considered close to Raje, said: “I think she should become leader of opposition. She has the experience to run a government, and who could be a better candidate in ensuring that the new government is kept in check than the former chief minister?”
ThePrint reached Raje for comment but was yet to receive one until the time of publishing this report. The report will be updated when she responds.
Also read: Vasundhara Raje’s bid to turn from ‘maharani’ to ‘sevadarni’ is too little, too late
High command offers LoP post
The BJP high command is believed to have offered the leader of opposition post in the state assembly to Raje. The former chief minister, sources said, was made aware of the offer from Delhi but it is learnt that she has shown no keenness towards it.
BJP’s Rajasthan in-charge Avinash Rai Khanna said, “Nothing is decided as of now. We will let you know when it happens.”
Raje, it seems, does not want to lose control of the state unit. It is also being seen as her attempt at regaining her lost position in Rajasthan where she has served as chief minister for two terms and is considered to be the party’s tallest leader from the state.
Her posturing, however, could create problems for the BJP’s central leadership as it had planned to take complete charge of the state unit ahead of the Lok Sabha polls. The party feels that Raje’s negative image among the cadre had caused its recent defeat in the Assembly polls and making her the state unit chief could adversely affect its prospects in 2019.
Rajasthan is an important part of the BJP’s plan to return to power at the Centre.
This, however, isn’t the first stand-off between Raje and the top BJP leadership.
In the run-up to the assembly elections, the central leadership had to bow to Raje’s wishes and give up on appointing its candidate, Jodhpur MP Gajendra Shekhawat, as the state BJP president. Eventually, Madan Lal Saini was chosen as a consensus candidate.
The battle for the state unit president between the two factions had become so ugly that the post remained vacant for months ahead of the crucial assembly polls, which the BJP lost to the Congress.
If the new government in Jaipur – with two engines under its bonnet – settles down well, it can hope to harvest 15 of the state’s Lok Sabha seats. A similar pattern in MP and Chhatisgarh. Perhaps even more so in other states in the Hindi heartland where the CMs are not performing well. 2. Ms Raje and some other leaders of substance may be planning for life in the party after 2019.