Modi meets BJP cadre
The closed-door interaction held by Modi was attended by Union minister and party chief JP Nadda and national general secretary (organisation) BL Santhosh.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday interacted with Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) workers at the party headquarters in the national capital as he lauded their efforts in the Lok Sabha elections, during which the party emerged as the single largest party and returned to power at the Centre for a third straight term with support from its allies.
According to BJP functionaries aware of the details, the closed-door interaction held by Modi was attended by Union minister and party chief JP Nadda and national general secretary (organisation) BL Santhosh.
BJP IT head Amit Malviya said Modi met party workers who have been working for the organisation for decades. “Today, Prime Minister Modi came to the BJP HQ to meet our staff, many of whom have been working for the party for decades. They have seen the party rise from 2 seats to 303, when we just had one Ambassador car to now a fleet,” he wrote on X. It was an emotional moment for them to be recognised, he added.
The interaction was held at a time when internal differences in the BJP have surfaced in some states, notably Uttar Pradesh, where the party’s performance in the general elections has sparked off concerns. Statements by a section of BJP leaders blaming one another, in a party that is otherwise known for discipline, have raised eyebrows.
The BJP won 240 seats in the Lok Sabha polls and did not cross the halfway mark in the Lower House, requiring the support of key partners in the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) to form the government.
In Uttar Pradesh, the BJP’s tally fell from 62 to 33 with serious setbacks in erstwhile strongholds such as Faizabad (Ayodhya), where the Ram Temple consecration ceremony had given the party a boost, eastern UP and places such as Amethi.
It is not for the time that Modi interacted with party workers and shared a meal with them. Similar meetings were held in 2014 and 2019 after the Lok Sabha polls, when the BJP came to power with a brute majority.
Modi, who has worked his way up in the party, is known for addressing BJP workers at regular intervals to share his experiences, keep up the morale and issue instructions as well.
During his address to party workers in Uttar Pradesh in the run up to the polls, Modi had urged them to “work with a resolve to break all old records of the polling booths” and cautioned that even the “slightest arrogance” has the potential to drive away voters.