Gadkari's omission in BJP rejig a message to RSS?

Tribune News Service

Vibha Sharma

New Delhi, August 18

As the BJP yesterday set in motion its plans for 2024, the biggest surprise came in the form of the ouster of former party president and senior Union Minister Nitin Gadkari from the highest decision-making body of the party — the Parliamentary Board.

Observers say omission of Gadkari from the high table is a big signal and that each appointment has come “laced with multiple meanings and purposes”.

The surprise decision also re-kindled speculations around Gadkari’s recent statement hinting at “sanyas” from politics. Speaking at an event in Nagpur, Gadkari lamented how politics had become “100 per cent sattakaran (powerplay)”, adding: “I think a lot about when I should quit politics. There are more things worth doing in life than politics”. This, and some other recent statements and happenings, also suggest that Gadkari was unhappy over some aspects in the party, they said.

Many who have come in his contact in the recent past recall similar hints from Gadkari — one of the few ministers from 2014 to make it to the Narendra Modi regime 2.0 in 2019. Observers attribute his “good relationship” with the top brass of the RSS, the BJP’s ideological fountainhead, as one of the reasons why he has been able to hold his own despite sharing a “difficult relationship” with both Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah, almost from the time he was the party president in Delhi.

The observers say the omission of Gadkari from the powerful board is a big signal, and “also a message to the RSS”. The fact is 65-year-old Gadkari and 63-year-old Shivraj Singh Chouhan were dropped and BS Yediyurappa (79) and Satyanarayan Jatiya (76) added. Not including high-profile CMs like Yogi Adityanath and Himanta Biswa Sarma is not just a message to the two leaders but also the cadres”.

An outspoken leader who enjoys good relations with leaders across the political spectrum, Gadkari’s performance as a minister earned him praise even from bitter rivals of the BJP such as the Congress. He is currently the Minister for Road Transport and Highways.

Dropped from Parliamentary Board

• Union Minister Nitin Gadkari and MP CM Shivraj Chouhan were dropped from party’s highest decision-making body
• Ex-CM BS Yediyurappa and Satyanarayan Jatiya were added
• Not including Yogi Adityanath and Himanta Biswa Sarma not just a message to the two leaders, but also the cadres

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