Jaipur: The saffron brigade, BJP, appears uncertain about the role to be given to former CM of Rajasthan, Vasundhara Raje. She has been reappointed to the post of party's national Vice President in the recently announced team of party president JP Nadda. However, party workers and her loyalists were hoping for a bigger role for her in the upcoming assembly elections.
With just two months left before the imposition of the model code of conduct for the assembly elections in Rajasthan, the BJP has not yet announced any of its election management committees. According to sources, the reason behind this delay is the party's confusion regarding Raje's role.
Party wants to prioritise collective leadership
As a two-time CM, Raje is the most popular face of the party across the state, and despite her defeat in the last elections, she still attracts crowds. However, the party wants to prioritise collective leadership with the name and face of PM Modi.
"Party is aware of her popularity in the state, but it is also a fact that she remained away from most of the party activists during the last four and a half years, and factionalism was deep-rooted in the party. Besides this, Sachin Pilot, who has now surrendered, was demanding a probe against Raje. So, in case the party puts her face in front, Congress will get a chance to make direct attacks on her. Looking at this, the party is in no mood to announce any leader as the face for the CM post in the state and wants to go with collective leadership," said a senior leader of the party on anonymity.
Notably, the relations between Vasundhara Raje and former state chief of the party, Satish Punia, were not very cordial. There was a time when Raje loyalists publicly accused Punia of sidelining her, and Raje and the party organization kept themselves away from each other's activities.
After the defeat in Karnataka, the Raje camp was confident of getting prominence in the state assembly elections and hoped that the party would not repeat its mistake of sidelining the former CM, as was done with Yediyurappa in Karnataka.
In the meetings of party president JP Nadda and Union home minister Amit Shah held last month in the state, Raje got ample prominence, which heightened the expectations of Raje supporters. However, it seems that things have changed since then.
Her reinduction in the national team on the same post, her presence in the public meetings of PM Modi with no special mention, and her recent absence from the aggressive demonstration in Jaipur are suggesting that things are not going the way Raje or her supporters were hoping.
'BJP is vertically divided'
Political analyst Jagdish Sharma said that reasons are not known why the BJP is not keen to announce her as the face of the party but the party should think over this. "Even the Congress party workers feel that Raje's face may ensure a one-sided victory for BJP," said Sharma.
On the other hand, the ruling Congress is happy with what is going on in the opposition. Cabinet Minister Pratap Singh Khachariyawas said, "BJP is vertically divided. Their leaders are fighting for the CM post and these fights will get deeper as the ticket distribution will start," said Khachariyawas.
