The national council and national executive meetings of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) are unlikely to consider elevating Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi as the head of its election campaign committee.

The meetings, to be held at Goa this week, may not be able to announce the campaign committee, as internal deliberations on the issue are not yet over.

There were reports that a section in the BJP, headed by veteran L.K. Advani, is opposed to any “hurried” decision. A senior BJP leader told Business Line that Modi himself will have to talk to the Parliamentary Board members to get clarity on the issue.

He said as the party would have to focus on States such as Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, where caste equations were more important, elaborate discussions are needed on the strategy of the campaign. “More than a leader, we need a strategy for the campaign. Such discussions will take time,” the leader said.

Modi’s lieutenant, Amit Shah, holds charge of the party’s affairs in Uttar Pradesh. “We are focussing on at least 40 seats in the State. Modi has a huge support base in the State. But a lot of other considerations are also before the voters,” the senior leader said.

The BJP has already started efforts to revive its base among Brahmins and backward communities. A section in the State party is not satisfied with the selection of Shah, who, according to them, may not be able to read the undercurrents of UP’s caste politics.

So, party insiders believe that announcing Modi as the leader campaign committee will not be possible in the Goa meeting.

Meanwhile, buoyed by the victory in the by-polls, Modi met BJP President Rajnath Singh and Advani. Advani had recently said that the Madhya Pradesh chief Minister, Shivraj Singh Chouhan, had done much more than Modi as Chief Minister.

Modi’s meeting with Advani is being interpreted as an effort to win the confidence of the senior leader. Advani is reportedly against projecting Modi as BJP’s Prime Ministerial candidate.

jigeesh.am@thehindu.co.in

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