All in the family: Why Opposition should think twice before poking BJP over picking new president

Yadav’s jibe stemmed from the fact that the BJP has yet to elect a new party president, nearly 10 months after JP Nadda was inducted into the Narendra Modi Cabinet following the party’s win in the 2024 Lok Sabha election. Nadda was elected the BJP national president in 2020, taking over the reins from current Union home minister Amit Shah. Although the BJP chief’s term lasts three years, Nadda was granted extension in view of the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

11 different presidents in 4 decades

A cursory look at the history shows why Shah's jest at SP and its ilk carries merit.

Despite the Opposition questioning the delay in appointing a new BJP president, the saffron party has historically followed a democratic process, selecting its leaders based on merit rather than personal affiliations.

Over the years, as many as 11 leaders have served as national presidents, with a few holding the post multiple times.

Among them are prominent leaders such as Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Lal Krishna Advani, Murli Manohar Joshi, Kushabhau Thakre, Bangaru Laxman, K Jana Krishnamurthy, M Venkaiah Naidu, Nitin Gadkari, Rajnath Singh, Amit Shah, and Jagat Prakash Nadda.

Reports suggest that the party will soon initiate the long-pending process of electing its new national president. The announcement is expected to take place by the third week of April, with the process to be initiated after the conclusion of the ongoing Parliament session.

It's all in the family?

Since BJP's inception in 1980, Congress has seen 7 presidents of which four were from the Nehru-Gandhi family while three were non-family members.

However, members of the Gandhi family held power for a much longer time than others.

Sonia Gandhi, for instance, remains the longest-serving Congress president, having led the party for over two decades.

Breaking an over 24-year trend, Mallikarjun Kharge, a staunch Gandhi family loyalist from Karnataka, was elected Congress president in 2022, taking over from Sonia Gandhi as the party’s top leader. Kharge defeated his rival Shashi Tharoor by a margin of 6,825 votes.

National party leadership: Who’s at the helm?

While Congress has had outsiders serve as party presidents, the same cannot be said for many other opposition parties. The reins of most of these parties have remained firmly within family circles.

Interestingly, Akhilesh Yadav, who criticised the BJP in Lok Sabha yesterday, has been leading the Samajwadi Party — founded by his father, Mulayam Singh Yadav — since 2017. Before Akhilesh Yadav, his father, Mulayam Singh Yadav, had held the position since the party’s founding in 1992.

Similarly, Mamata Banerjee has remained at the helm of the All India Trinamool Congress (TMC) since founding the party in 1998. Meanwhile, Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati continues to lead the BSP, despite past speculation that her nephew, Akash Anand, might succeed her.

On January 18, 2025, the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) elevated Tejashwi Yadav to a status equal to that of party president and his father, Lalu Prasad, granting him decision-making authority over key party matters, including its name, symbol, and programmes.

In the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), MK Stalin has been the president since 2018, succeeding his father, M Karunanidhi. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), founded in 2012, has also been led by Arvind Kejriwal since its inception.

Similarly, the reins of Shiv Sena (undivided) was taken over by Bal Thackeray's son Uddhav Thackeray. Uddhav now leads the Shiv Sena (UBT) faction since the party got split into two, with the other faction being led by Eknath Shinde.