Naming of state BJP chief likely after election of national president

According to Kamalalayam sources, (BJP headquarters) the current working president JP Nadda is tipped to head the saffron party and he will have a say in the restructuring of all state BJP units. Tamil Nadu BJP unit, which is headless without a state president since last year when then-president Tamilisai Soundararajan resigned to take over as Telangana Governor, is also expected to get a head.

According to BJP insiders, the party’s constitution is that once per cent of state level organisational polls are completed, the election for thenational president takes place which follows the reworking of state units.

“With the change of guard scheduled at the national level, the orders for new BJP chief in Tamil Nadu is expected in a couple of days,” said a BJP state secretary conforming that the party seniors like Pon Radhakrishnan, H Raja, Nainar Nagendran and CP Radhakrishnan are vying hard for the coveted post.

The current team without the president will be asked to continue till a new team is formed and not much change is expected in the state. Prominent BJP leaders like Vanathi Srinivasan, L Murugan, KT Raghavan and Karuppu Muraganandham are also making rounds as probable candidates for the new TN BJP chief post, the party senior told DT Next.

The election of Nadda is said to be a foregone conclusion replacing Union Home Minister Amit Shah and now the new president is scheduled to fill the key posts for all the state units of BJP.

BJP national president and state presidents are usually given a three-year tenure, sources said. With Assembly polls in Tamil Nadu scheduled for 2021, the state BJP chief will have a tough task in building the party base in the state.

“Sabarimala controversy, Thiruvalluvar as saffron saint, recovery of temple deity, retrieval of land owned by Hindu Religious Endowment Board, Hindu Rashtra and projection of actor Rajinikanth as a BJP supporter are some of the political strategies mooted by the BJP,” said an AIADMK MLA admitting that thepolicies of the BJP were affecting its ally AIADMK which is witnessing an erosion inthe minority vote bank of ruling party.