Amit Shah shifts focus on 120 weak seats' for LS polls

New Delhi: While the Opposition is trying to recover from the recent electoral debacles, the BJP has swung into action with its president Amit Shah putting in place a roadmap to further expand the party across the country ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

Mr Shah asserted at the recent national executive meeting of the party in Bhubaneswar that the BJP’s “golden era” would arrive only when it rules across the country — from panchayat to Parliament.

Mr Shah, sources said, has deputed Central ministers, national general secretaries and more than 3,000 vistaraks (part-time volunteers) in 120 parliamentary constituencies, where the BJP either lost or came second in 2014.

Some of these seats include those, which the party had been winning, but lost in 2014 despite a “Modi wave.”

Chhattisgarh’s Durg is one such seat. Party leaders and vistaraks will highlight the Modi government’s “achievements”, BJP-ruled state’s “growth story”, and inform people why they should vote for the BJP.

They will also monitor whether or not Central schemes are being implemented properly, and review organisational issues.

Each minister and general secretary have been given the charge of five to six such constituencies.

Mr Shah, it was learnt, will personally monitor the implementation of the strategy on five to six of these seats. He will also deliberate and further strategise on the feedback received from central ministers and national office-bearers.

The BJP president is also embarking on a tour to state units for a reality check of the party’s organisational strength before the next Lok Sabha elections and Assembly elections in between in key states, including Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan among others.

Factionalism is one of the key issues that Mr Shah would be addressing during his tour. He would also review whether or not state units have offices in each district.

Surveys would be conducted on socio-economic issues and caste-wise distribution of voters.

The BJP won 282 seats in 2014. Its top brass, sources said, however, feels that some of the MPs would have to be replaced due to anti-incumbency or other factors. The Party leadership feels that strengthening its base in constituencies where it did not do well last time could compensate where its MPs would be facing anti-incumbency.

Meanwhile, Mr Shah on Tuesday named national general secretary and Rajya Sabha MP Bhupendra Yadav as the party’s Gujarat in-charge. Mr Yadav would succeed Dinesh Sharma, now one of the two deputy chief ministers of Uttar Pradesh.