Santosh asks partymen to gear up for Assembly poll

BJP national general secretary B L Santosh lighting a lamp to inaugurate party meeting in Katra on Thursday. — Excelsior/Romesh Mengi
BJP national general secretary B L Santosh lighting a lamp to inaugurate party meeting in Katra on Thursday. — Excelsior/Romesh Mengi

BJP for carving out Assembly seat of Katra

Avtar Bhat
JAMMU, July 22: Maintaining that Assembly elections are round the corner, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) national general secretary (Org), B L Santosh today asked the partymen to gear up for the polls which can be held within six to eight months.
The BJP national leader, who is also part of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) think tank, who reached here this morning for a three days tour of J&K UT to take the stock of prevailing political situation as well as chalk out party’s strategy for the same during his hectic programme, held series of meetings with ground level party workers to its Core Group members during the day.
In all the meetings, he urged the party men to be prepared for the Assembly elections which can be held within six to eight months now. Santosh, who took complete feed back from party cadres on their performance, asked them to increase liaison with public and also approach those people who are averse to BJP ideology to bring them into party fold.
He urged the BJP men in the UT to redouble their efforts in strengthening the party and taking its message and public welfare programmes launched by Narendra Modi Government to every nook and corner in the UT and ensure that these schemes reach to common man at grass root level.
“You have to approach every section and class of the people apprising them about the good work done by Modi Government during last seven years for the welfare of the people, besides giving rights to deprived and opressed sections of society” Santosh told the representatives of various Morchas during his closed-door meeting with them.
He said “BJP needs support of each and every section of people as the party is wedded to the good governance and public welfare to give a transparent Government to people as for us nation is our first priority”. “The representatives of different Morchas have to approach the people they represent and take public welfare policies and programmes launched by Modi Government to them”, he added.
“This Government has launched many welfare schemes for women, downtrodden people and other sections of the society and it is the duty of ground level workers to take these schemes to masses and apprise them about their benefits, listen their problems and work for their redressal,” he said, adding thee party cadre should from today itself start exercise in this regard by touching each and every household across the UT to increase its poll prospects.
Earlier, the BJP leader after reaching here straightway left for holy township of Katra to take part in BJP’s Mandal meeting there. Addressing the party men there, he urged them to work for making Katra a “model town” on pattern of Indore city in MP. He said Katra is second holy town of India where one crore pilgrims visit every year.
“The BJP people have to work so hard to make this town as model town of the country to give an impression to visiting pilgrims about the good working of the BJP Government. He assured every sort of support in this task and said that when you work hard in this regard the Government will automatically support your cause.
He also referred to various developmental projects taken up in hand or which have already been completed for the development of this town. He, in this regard, referred to Delhi, Amritsar and Katra Corridor which will prove a game changer for the entire J&K.
During the Working Committee meeting a resolution was passed by BJP that Katra be given the status of separate Assembly segment. The party said when Eidgah in Srinagar and Charar-e-Sharief in Budgam district of Kashmir which symbolize the religious places have been made separate Assembly segments why not holy town of Katra which is famous all over country be made the separate seat. The meeting urged the Government that this demand be conceded on priority basis.
Later, Santosh held meetings with president and general secretaries of various Cells of BJP at party headquarters at Jammu. The leaders of various Cells and Morchas who met him included BJYM, Mahila Morcha, Kissan Morcha, SC Morcha, IT etc. This was followed by his meeting with leaders of various departments of the party.
He also held a closed-door meeting with BJP’s Core Group and discussed the party’s future programmes and strategy to be adopted in the forth coming Assembly elections. He, according to party sources, stressed the party leadership to overcome the shortcomings and have a good liaison with people by fanning out in every nook and corner, listening peoples grievances and taking steps for their redressal.
He said the party should give an impression to masses that BJP is for public service and not for power. This message is to be carried to every house hold by countering the opposition propaganda strongly, he added.
The Core Group members who attended the meeting included BJP president, Ravinder Raina, party general secretaries, Ashok Kaul, Vibodh Gupta, Sunil Sharma, Dr D K Manyal, former Deputy CM Kavinder Gupta, former Minister Sat Sharma and Party chief spokesperson, Sunil Sethi.