K Venkateshwarlu
The BJP high command has been appointing in-charge general secretaries for the BJP Telangana unit one after the other to strengthen the party in the State. In the latest move, the BJP moved Rajasthan party unit key organiser Chandrashekhar to Telangana.
Now, the measures taken by the party’s high command have provoked a debate in the BJP Telangana unit as to how the party can be strengthened in the State without making the party strong at the grassroots level.
The party was considered an alternative to the BRS ahead of the Assembly election. However, it lost momentum though a number of leaders were at the helm of affairs.
A party leader told The Pioneer on condition of anonymity that the party will become strong only if the local leadership is strong from top to bottom. Everyone knows the mistakes that have crept into the party, but nobody is prepared to take up the task of correcting them.
The party won eight seats due to the hard work put in by the local leaders and local conditions. The strategies chalked out by the national leaders or State leadership cannot be said to have helped the party win eight seats.
Earlier, the party appointed Tarun Chug as the general secretary in charge of Telangana. Later, the party appointed Sunil Bansal as in-charge general secretary stating that he played a key role in bringing the party to power in Uttar Pradesh. Later, the party appointed Sangh pointsman Arvind Menon asking him to firm up the cadre in the State during Assembly elections. Arvind Menon was the pracharak from Guruvayur, known to be close to Union Home Minister Amit Shah, was appointed co-in charge of BJP’s Telangana affairs.
The party’s latest appointment is Chandrasekhar in Telangana where the saffron party is looking to make gains in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. The party appointed Chandrasekhar expecting that his organisational skills would help the party in Telangana as his skills earned praise from several senior party leaders and recently he played a key role in bringing the party to power in Rajasthan.
Now, it is not that easy for the party to prove its mettle as the Congress came to power and the BRS is determined to prove that it is still strong in the State by winning a majority of seats. In the last Lok Sabha elections, the BJP won four seats and it is not easy for the party as it is now facing a different set of challenges as the resurgent Congress came to power in the State, defeating the ruling BRS.
