Over a month after B.Y. Vijayendra was appointed as the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chief in Karnataka, the high command revamped the party organisation and approved a new list of office-bearers on Saturday.
Four-time MLA and prominent OBC face of the party V. Sunil Kumar, who was a contender for both the party president and the Leader of Opposition in the Assembly posts, has now been appointed as one of the four general secretaries, which is a crucial post in the party organisation. Mr. Kumar is known to be from the faction that had been opposed to B.S. Yediyurappa.
The other general secretaries are: Scheduled Castes (SC) leader, two-time MLA and former sub inspector of police P. Rajeev; former MLA from K.R. Puram, Bengaluru, N.S. Nandeesh Reddy (who seems to have lost out to Byrathi Basavaraj, now appointed as a vice-president), and former MLA J. Preetham Gowda, who took on the H.D. Deve Gowda family on their home turf in Hassan.
A.S. Manjunath alias Cement Manju, who won this time from Sakleshpur, Hassan district, has been appointed as president of the party’s SC Morcha. Despite being in an alliance with the Janata Dal (Secular), the BJP has chosen to promote the party in Hassan aggressively, the regional party’s main base, by choosing two leaders from there as its office-bearers.
‘Vijayendra’s stamp’
The list of office-bearers that came out, hours after a BJP national office-bearers meeting in New Delhi addressed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in which Mr. Vijayendra also took part, set party circles abuzz of the “dominance” of Mr. Yediyurappa and Mr. Vijayendra in the party affairs.
“The list is a clear indication that the father-son duo have had their way for the most part,” a senior party leader said.
The four general secretaries to Mr. Vijayendra, 48, are in the same age bracket as him: Mr. Sunil Kumar, 48; Mr. Rajeev, 46; Mr. Reddy, 52, and Mr. Preetham Gowda, 41. With this the party seems to be making a generational transition.
“The high command has clearly chosen a young team for Mr. Vijayendra. The choice of general secretaries indicates an aggressive style of politics electorally. Ideological aggressiveness has also been accommodated,” a senior party leader said.
Vice-presidents
Former Minister and Lingayat leader Murugesh Nirani, Mr. Basavaraj, and N. Mahesh are among those appointed as vice-presidents. Rajugowda Nayak, Haratalu Halappa, Roopali Santosh Naik, and Malavika Avinash are the others.
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New office-bearers of BJP
Vice-presidents: Murugesh Nirani, Byrathi Basavaraj, Rajugowda Nayak, N. Mahesh, Anil Benake, Haratalu Halappa, Roopali Santosh Naik, Basavaraj Kelagara, Malavika Avinash, M. Rajendra
General secretaries: V. Sunil Kumar, P. Rajeev, N.S. Nandeesh Reddy, J. Preetham Gowda
