Early Times Report
Jammu, Aug 5: As the process for the maiden Assembly elections in the Union Territory has started by the Election Commission of India, the BJP is likely to postpone the election of the J&K president of the party.
Sources in the party said that in case the Assembly elections would be held in September, the party was not going to change the incumbent team because it will disturb preparations for polls.
Although the tenure of the incumbent J&K president of BJP Ravinder Raina has expired, the party is unlikely to elect a new president at the crucial juncture when the process for elections has started.
Highly placed sources said that the BJP central leadership has decided that a new team of office bearers would be elected only after completion of the Assembly polls.
“As preparations for the elections are going in full swing, the party is not going for a change of guard because starting the process of electing new team would hamper election preparations”, a source said, adding, “the incumbent president Ravinder Raina will take important decisions after the consultation with the core group of the party”.
As reported earlier, Ravinder Raina, the current president of the BJP's Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) unit, was set to be replaced after his tenure was extended in January 2 The BJP is likely to postpone the election of the J&K president of the party.
If Assembly elections are held in September, the party won’t change the incumbent team because it will disturb preparations for polls.
The BJP central leadership has decided that a new team of office bearers would be elected only after completion of the Assembly polls.
Ravinder Raina has led the J&K unit of the BJP for the past six years, overseeing two Lok Sabha elections during his tenure.
Ravinder Raina has led the J&K unit of the BJP for the past six years, overseeing two Lok Sabha elections during his tenure. He was appointed as the chief of the erstwhile state of J&K on May 14, 2018, succeeding Sat Sharma, who joined the council of ministers under then Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti on April 30, 2018. Although Raina’s leadership saw the BJP maintain its tally of three Lok Sabha seats in the 2019 elections, the party faced setbacks in the 2024 elections as Congress regained ground in many parts of the Jammu province, especially in Hindu-majority areas of the Jammu district.
Despite retaining both Lok Sabha seats, the BJP encountered stiff competition from Congress. Sources indicate that over a dozen leaders are vying for the position of J&K BJP president, but the selection process has yet to commence.
Like JP Nadda, Ravinder Raina was granted an extension to lead the party until the Lok Sabha elections. Nadda, who became the full-time president of the BJP, saw his term expire in January this year. He received a six-month extension to oversee the Lok Sabha elections, with his term now ending in June. |
