Amarinder, Jakhar join key BJP panel
NEW DELHI: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Friday announced the inclusion of former Punjab chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh and former Congress leader Sunil Jakhar as members of its national executive. Former party president of the the BJP’S Uttar Pradesh unit, Swatantra Dev Singh has also been appointed a member of the national executive.
While Singh announced the merger of his Punjab Lok Congress with the BJP in September, Jhakar joined the party in March following his resentment over the appointment of Charanjit Singh Channi as Punjab chief minister. A former president of the Punjab unit, Jhakhar had a public falling out with the Congress party.
On Friday Singh tweeted, “Grateful to PM @narendraters
modi Ji, HM @Amitshah Ji and @Bjp4india President @Jpnadda Ji for reposing faith in me and appointing me as a member of the party’s National Executive committee.”
The national executive committee is a central decisionmaking body of the BJP. It has 50 special invitees, and 179 permanent invitees, including chief ministers, deputy chief ministers, and leaders of legislative assemblies. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and party president J P Nadda are both part of the national executive, as are almost all senior minisof the party.
Madan Kaushik former president of the BJP’S Uttarakhand unit and Vishnu Deo Sai, who was the president of the Chhattisgarh unit have been appointed as special invitees to the committee. Former Congress spokesperson Jaiveer Shergill has been appointed as spokesperson. Shergill quit the Congress in August.
With an eye on strengthening the Punjab unit of the party, the BJP central leadership has also included former Congress leaders Rana Gurmeet Singh, Sodhi, Manoranjan Kalia and Amarjot Kaur, Ramoowalia as special invitees.
In the previous assembly elections in Punjab, the BJP and its former ally Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) did not contest together. The SAD broke its alliance with the BJP to protest the now repealed farm laws. The saffron party won only two of the 173 seats it contested.