The long-drawn impasse over the next Uttarakhand Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president ended with the party’s national president Rajnath Singh announcing the name of Tirath Singh Rawat late on Saturday night in New Delhi.
The term of outgoing party president Bishen Singh Chufal ended in November. Mr. Rawat would have to work overtime to keep the warring factions within the saffron party united.
Arriving to a warm welcome at the BJP headquarters here on Sunday, Mr. Rawat said his job would be to further strengthen the party organisation for the general elections next year.
“People are fed up with rising inflation and corruption and insecurity in everyday life. The Congress-led UPA government at the Centre has failed on all fronts and the BJP cadres will now fan out to the remotest villages to apprise the masses about the anti-people policies and utter lack of vision in the Congress,” Mr. Rawat said, adding that the BJP would win all the Lok Sabha seats in the State in the next elections.
A student leader, former minister and Sangh pracharak, Mr. Rawat represents the Chaubattakhal constituency in the Vidhan Sabha. “A dynamic organiser, Mr. Rawat will go a long way in further strengthening the party,” said former Chief Ministers B.C. Khanduri and Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank.
The party high command had asked Mr. Tirath Singh Rawat and former minister Trivendra Singh Rawat to withdraw from the contest so that the choice could be unanimous.
Mr. Tirath Singh Rawat was supported by a majority of MLAs, Mr. Khanduri and Mr. Nishank. Mr. Trivendra Singh Rawat was nominated by former Chief Minister Bhagat Singh Koshiary. The two were asked to withdraw from the fray as the party high command wanted as the State president.
