PM Modi to outline party's political roadmap at BJP meet today

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to outline the political roadmap for the BJP in the run up to a string of state assembly polls this year and the 2024 Lok Sabha election as the party's national executive gets underway on its second and last day on Tuesday.

Modi is scheduled to speak in the valedictory session of the meeting where around 350 BJP leaders from across the country, including Union ministers and chief ministers, have gathered to deliberate over the party's electoral strategy, organisational issues and other matters of political significance. Gujarat BJP president C R Paatil, who led it to the highest ever tally for any party in the recent state assembly polls, may also make some remarks.

Meanwhile, political resolution proposed at the BJP national executive on Monday accused the Opposition of running negative campaign over several issues against the government and launching "personal attacks" on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and asserted that Supreme Court verdicts exposed it.

Senior leaders, including Modi and BJP president J P Nadda, have asked other state units to take a leaf out of the party's campaign in the western state.

Starting from Tripura, Nagaland and Meghalaya, assembly polls are expected to be held in Karnataka followed by Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Mizoram in one go and then in Telangana in 2023.

On the first day of the meeting on Monday, Nadda exhorted party leaders to ensure its victory in all nine state assembly polls slates for this year. He said the Modi-led government has ensured India's all-round progress and expressed confidence of the party's victory prospects in the polls, including the Lok Sabha election.

The political resolution proposed at the meeting on Monday accused the Opposition of running a negative campaign over several issues against the government and launching "personal attacks" on Prime Minister Modi, and asserted the that Supreme Court verdicts exposed it.

Nadda's speech at BJP national executive
BJP president J P Nadda on Monday asked senior organisation members from across the country to ensure the party's victory in all states.

Briefing reporters on Nadda's address to the BJP national executive, whose two-day meeting began here on Monday, its leader and former Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said the party president asserted that the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government has ensured India's all-round progress as he expressed confidence of the party's victory prospects in the polls, including the Lok Sabha election.

The party has to work to bring it to power in the states where it is in opposition and to make the states, where it is in power, its "impregnable fort", Nadda said.

In his nearly 45-minute closed-door address, Nadda highlighted the representation to Other Backward Classes, Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in the BJP governments in states and the Centre, besides in constitutional positions like governor. He noted that in President Droupadi Murmu, India has got its first tribal person at the top constitutional post.

"The party is getting votes of the backward classes, SCs and STs and is giving them representation. This shows our resolve of Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas, and Sabka Prayas," he said, stressing on the expanding voter base of the party in the last several years since Modi led it to victory in 2014 and then in 2019. Nadda lauded India's progress under the Modi government.

Nadda praised the party's win in the recent Gujarat assembly polls as "extraordinary and historic", saying winning more than 150 seats in the 182-member assembly is a great achievement. While the party lost in Himachal Pradesh to the Congress, the vote gap between the two parties was less than one per cent, he said.

He said India has made rapid strides to fulfil the 'panch pran' (five pledges), including freedom from every trace of slavery and feeling proud of the country's heritage, voiced by the prime minister in his Independence Day speech.

Party's political resolution
Law Minister Kiren Rijiju proposed the resolution at the key meeting, a pointer to his rising profile in the party as he spearheads the government's position on legal and judicial issues, and Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya and Karnataka minister Govind Karjol seconded it, Union minister Nirmala Sitharaman told reporters here.

Sitharaman cited a number of issues over which the Opposition had built a campaign against the government, including Rafale, Pegasus, Central Vista project, demonetisation and EWS quota, and said the Supreme Court verdicts in the government's favour on them exposed it.

Unfounded and personal allegations were levelled against PM Modi but the crushing legal response exposed the Opposition, she said, citing political resolution.