Poonia’s rise signals decline of BJP old guard in state

NEW LEADER Experts say new state BJP chief, who has worked his way up the organisation, also has RSS backing

JAIPUR: With Satish Poonia formally taking over charge as Rajasthan BJP president, the party’s old guard including former chief minister Vasundhara Raje, have taken a backseat.

Poonia, 56, is soft-spoken and amiable. He has worked within the organisation for several years and is well-grounded and liked by workers.

Political commentator Narayan Bareth said while choosing a new face to head the state party organisation, the party keeps traits such as loyalty, public behaviour, caste, leadership quality in mind. Poonia, he says, has all the traits. “He worked loyally and patiently within the organisation. He worked his way up the organisation, starting with ABVP and has the RSS’S blessings.”

Poonia is the first Jat to be appointed the state party president. Jats form 16-17 percent of the state’s population and is a politically important community. And the BJP is not taking any chances in view of the forthcoming assembly bypolls and panchayat elections.

Poonia’s rise signals a generational shift, says Bareth.

For close to two decades, the Rajasthan BJP had become synonymous with Raje, the party’s most dynamic l eader. She became the party chief in 2003 and led it to victory in two assembly elections, becoming the chief minister in 2003 and 2013.

However ,with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and union minister Amit Shah taking reins of the party, Raje and leaders close to her have slowly been sidelined, says Bareth.

Raje has largely withdrawn from the party’s affairs in the state and is not being regularly consulted. In fact, the power shift was visible since the Lok Sabha elections. Union minister Prakash Javadekar was given the party charge in Rajasthan and took all major decisions.

The new leadership emerging in the state is represented by younger leaders such as Poonia, Lok Sabha speaker Om Birla, union minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, Barmer MP Kailash Choudhury, Rajsamand MP Diya Kumari and Chittorgarh MP CP Joshi.

Those leaders once seen as close to Raje such as former party president Ashok Parnami, former minister Arun Chaturvedi and deputy leader of opposition Rajendra Rathore have all changed camps to stay politi