BJP president Nitin Nabin is expected to soon constitute several of the party's key organisational bodies, including the Parliamentary Board, Central Election Committee, National Executive and National Council. With Nabin's team now settling into place, attention has turned to possible changes in the party's highest decision-making body and the leaders who could be included in it. The Parliamentary Board plays a significant role in major organisational and political decisions, including recommending candidates for Prime Minister and Chief Minister and deciding on alliances and disciplinary matters.
Under the BJP constitution, the National President serves as the ex-officio chairman of the Parliamentary Board, while a General Secretary is appointed as its secretary. The body can have a maximum of 11 members, including the party president, although the current board has 12 members. Its present members include Nitin Nabin, PM Modi, Rajnath Singh, Amit Shah, JP Nadda, BS Yediyurappa, Sarbananda Sonowal, K Laxman, Iqbal Singh Lalpura, Sudha Yadav and Satyanarayan Jatiya. National General Secretary (Organisation) BL Santhosh serves as the board's secretary.
The composition of the Parliamentary Board is expected to attract attention because several senior BJP leaders could be considered for inclusion or retention. Party sources have rejected suggestions that seniority was ignored, pointing to representation for Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribe and minority communities. The role of chief ministers could also become an important consideration, particularly with leaders such as Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis being seen as potential contenders for greater organisational roles.
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The inclusion of a sitting chief minister in the Parliamentary Board has previously generated debate because the body can play a role in selecting chief ministers. Narendra Modi was removed from the board in 2006 when Rajnath Singh became BJP president, before returning in 2013 after being named the party's prime ministerial candidate. In 2022, then BJP president JP Nadda removed Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and former president Nitin Gadkari from the board. Nabin will now have to decide whether to retain former presidents such as JP Nadda and Nitin Gadkari.
The Central Election Committee will also need to be reconstituted. The committee includes all members of the Parliamentary Board as well as additional leaders, and is responsible for finalising the party's candidates for elections. Devendra Fadnavis, Union Minister Bhupender Yadav and former Mahila Morcha president V Srinivasan are among its current additional members. With Roop Kumari Chaudhary now heading the BJP Mahila Morcha, she is expected to become an ex-officio member of the committee, while Nabin will decide whether existing members are retained or replaced.
Beyond the two key bodies, Nabin is also expected to constitute the National Executive and National Council as part of the party's organisational restructuring. The National Executive can have up to 120 members, with mandatory representation including at least 40 women and 12 members from SC/ST communities. The National Council will include representatives elected by state councils, members of the parliamentary party, former party presidents, legislative leaders, National Executive members and heads of national party fronts, along with members nominated by the BJP president. These organisational decisions are expected to shape Nabin's leadership structure and the party's preparations for upcoming political challenges.
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