Key factors for next UP BJP chief: Caste, cadre, chemistry with CM

Time of India

6 days ago

Lucknow: The much-anticipated appointment of the new UP BJP chief will be done after factoring in a slew of key parameters, including caste of the candidate, and whether he/she belongs to original cadre (the one having a robust backing of the RSS and associated with the party for at least 10-15 years).
Besides, deft organisational skills and having a seamless coordination with Chief Minister
Yogi Adityanath
are the other important factors.
This is learnt to have been the high point of the recent discussions between the state leadership and the party's high command even as the BJP gears up for future electoral battles, including the 2026 panchayat polls and subsequently the 2027 UP assembly elections.
The caste of the new UP BJP president, sources said, was indeed one the crucial factors which the party sought to examine in a bid to blunt opposition's aggressive charge – especially Samajwadi Party's Pichhda, Dalit, Alpsankhyak (PDA) poll narrative which is said to have dented the saffron outfit in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, sinking its tally from 62 to 33 in UP.
As a matter of fact, the names of at least seven leaders – including three from the OBC community, two Dalit and two Brahmins – have been doing the rounds for the past many days. Among the OBC leaders which have emerged are Union minister BL Verma and two UP ministers: Swatantra Dev Singh and Dharampal Singh. Likewise, among Dalits, the party was considering the names of MLC Vidhya Sagar Sonkar and former MP Ram Shankar Katheria.
BJP sources do not rule out the possibility of picking up a Brahmin for the top job. Not surprisingly, the names of former deputy CM Dinesh Sharma and former MP from Basti, Harish Dwivedi were doing the rounds.
Sources said that the party planned hoisting an original cadre -- having a strong affiliation with the RSS -- as the new state chief to boost the morale of `mool karyakarta'. Sources said that the party wanted to give weightage to a leader who has been associated with the BJP well prior to its meteoric rise under the leadership of PM Narendra Modi since 2014 Lok Sabha elections.
The insistence on a candidate with "original cadre" credentials, experts said, signalled BJP's desire for ideological purity and grassroots commitment. It also underscores the party's dependence on RSS's organizational machinery. Similarly, the 15-year affiliation with the party could potentially act as a litmus test for loyalty and an insider's understanding of the party's ideological ethos.
The BJP, sources said, is zeroing in on a leader who could manage multiple fronts simultaneously: internal factionalism, alliance dynamics and voter outreach, essentially in the rural and semi-urban precincts.
Sources said that the party preferred a leader who had a strong ground-level connection to energize booth-level workers and mobilize them for future campaigns.
Coordination with the Yogi Adityanath-led government was another crucial factor which the party aimed to prioritize before finalising the name of the new state president. This, analysts said, would also help in ensuring policy synergy between the government and the party.
Analysts said that Yogi was not just the administrative face of the state but also a powerful political force in his own right. BJP sources said that the party was in no mood to create any misaligned power centre to avoid a clash of authority in the state. "The party looked for someone who could complement rather than compete with Adityanath," a senior BJP leader said.