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| Factional fights not any lesser in BJP | | | Early Times Report
Jammu, Jan 14: Even after the installation of Shamsher Singh Manhas as President of the party the BJP unit in Jammu and Kashmir continues to be a divided house. The party seems to be witnessing new combinations among the leaders. The filling of the President's post is said to have widened the distance between the BJP and the RSS because the latter wanted either Jugal Kishore or Bali Bhagat to replace Ashok Khajuria. But the two senior BJP leaders, including Shanta Kumar, favoured appointment of Shamsher Singh as the party president after majority of senior party leaders supported his candidature.
Party sources said that the BJP unit is divided mainly between two groups, one led by Prof. Chaman Lal Gupta,and the other by Dr Nirmal Singh. It may be mentioned that Nirmal Singh had favoured the candidature of either Jugal Kishore or Bali Bhagat but his choice did not find any favour with majority of party leaders.
These sources said that out of 11 MLAs 10 MLAs are in the camp headed by Chaman Lal Gupta. It is only Jugal Kishore, MLA, who is in the camp led by Nirmal Singh but this camp has the support of the RSS.One report said that even the RSS is not united in its support to Nirmal Singh camp. There are a number of senior RSS leaders who support the group led by Chaman Lal Gupta.
This way the very purpose of having a new BJP president through consensus seems to have been defeated. Usually the posts of the president of the BJP in Jammu and Kashmir and other top office bearers are filled without election. One senior party leader explained that "we avoid election because that usually leaves trail of bitterness." He said the candidate who loses the election forms dissident groups because he does not like to fall in line after accepting the defeat smilingly. He admitted that like the previous years the filling of the President's post has not led to the end of dissensions in the BJP.
In reply to a question he said that the former President, Ashok Khajuria, has, after the installation of Shamsher Singh as party President, joined the camp headed by Chaman Lal Gupta.In fact Gupta had favoured the candidature of Shamsher Singh who is considered to be a better choice than either Bali Bhagat or Jugal Kishore. Bali Bhagat is a dedicated BJP leader. As a former MLA he had been in the forefront of campaigning against those who tried to promote discrimination of people of the Jammu region. When Ashok Khajuria was president of the party he would try to work out a balance between two groups in the party. He only could not succeed in countering the growing influence of Chaman Lal Gupta on the party leaders and workers.
Another party leader said that the level of dissensions in the party could be diluted if the President in consultation with the party high command succeeded in giving right posts to the right person. The President has to fill up the posts of vicepresidents, general secretaries, secretaries, and other posts and that too without a contest. Since Shamsher Singh has worked successfully as general secretary of the BJP he may be able to pick up the right person for the right job. As general secretary he has been least controversial and that may help him keeping dissensions under check.
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