Assembly elections 2023: Decoding BJP’s reliance on cabinet ministers

BJP’s national president JP Nadda and Union home minister Amit Shah will jointly lead the core group meeting in Rajasthan later today.

As the assembly polls approach in Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is strategically relying on its Union cabinet ministers to generate substantial momentum on the ground, ensuring a smoother path for the 2024 electoral battle.

In its new strategy, the party has chosen three Union cabinet ministers, including Narendra Singh Tomar, Prahlad Patel and Faggan Singh Kulaste, along with four other MPs from Madhya Pradesh.

Sources said the saffron party will be repeating the same strategy in Rajasthan, where it is in opposition with 73 MLAs. The party’s central leadership is considering fielding two more Union cabinet ministers, Gajendra Singh Shekhawat and Arjun Ram Meghwal, as well as Speaker Om Birla from the state, sources added.

Also read: As Rajasthan assembly elections draw close, Congress, BJP battle factionalism

The party’s decision to field heavyweight candidates is aimed at countering anti-incumbency and the rising popularity of Congress, especially after it assumed a leading role in the INDIA alliance.

To reach a consensus on this decision, BJP's national president JP Nadda, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and the party's general secretary (organisation) BL Santosh will be leading a core group meeting in Rajasthan later on September 27.

During this meeting, the party will engage in a thorough discussion about candidate selection for both state and Lok Sabha elections. Sources said that the central leaders will assess the current political scenario in Rajasthan, gather feedback on potential candidates and plan the schedule for rallies and campaign strategies.

In both the upcoming state elections in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan there are 29 and 25 Lok Sabha members, respectively chosen during general elections. Presently, the party has 28 MPs from Madhya Pradesh and 24 from Rajasthan.

While Congress’ troubles — Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot vs younger leader Sachin Pilot — and the divide between Kamal Nath and Digvijay Singh in Madhya Pradesh have dominated the headlines, BJP, which prides itself on being a disciplined party, also faces its share of challenges in the form of factionalism in both states.

Earlier in December 2022, former CM Vasundhara Raje was observed organising separate political events parallel to the state leadership’s “Jan Aakrosh Yatra,” which aimed to cover 200 assembly segments.

Raje and her loyalists held a Sankalp Sammelan in Rajkot on December 25, 2022. Her unannounced visit to Bikaner in October 2022 caused a stir within the party as it turned into a display of her supporters’ strength.

She had a direct confrontation with the then-party state president, Satish Poonia. However, sources said that factionalism exists among other state leaders and cabinet ministers as well.

On May 25, while addressing a rally in Jaipur, Prime Minister Narendra Modi conveyed a clear message that the state assembly contest is all about the growth of the Lotus symbol and urged everyone within the party to unite and fight together.

Political analyst Rasheed Kidwai said that the party’s decision may be an attempt to minimise losses considering that an MP covers multiple assembly segments. However, he views this strategy as more media-focused and indicative of leadership nervousness.

State politics centres around one prominent figure, such as CM Yogi Adityanath in Uttar Pradesh. Voters on the ground, see no distinction between a state leader and a cabinet minister, adds Kidwai.

He said that BJP employed a similar strategy in Bengal, fielding four MPs but three of them lost, indicating that this approach can lead to confusion among party members working with specific leaders in constituencies.

Even when Congress was in power in the past, it fielded its MPs in Tamil Nadu without much success. The growing factionalism and anti-incumbency in both states have left the party with no clear choice for a chief ministerial candidate.

“With this move, the party is drawing a line, indicating that it’s a one-person leadership within the BJP, and that person is Narendra Modi. Everyone will have to follow the command,” Kidwai remarked.