By IANS
New Delhi : There were no doubts at the national executive meet of the Bharatiya Janata Party here Sunday that Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi is the emerging face of the party at the national level.
Modi was the most sought after leader at the inaugural session of the meet, which was held in the annexe of the Parliament complex. Even party president Rajnath Singh referred to him several times in his speech and sang praises for the Gujarat chief minister.
Singh made a reference to Modi while reiterating the BJP’s aim to fight anti-incumbency in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, which go to polls this year.
“We have shattered the myth in Gujarat that BJP government cannot return to power twice or thrice,” Singh said.
Many party insiders feel Singh looks upon Modi as a threat to his leadership. But he was clearly bowing to the growing pro-Modi sentiment within the party when he said, “Modi is the future of the party.”
The issues around which the BJP is trying to build up its election tempo have a strong Modi flavour to them, be it national unity and integrity, security of the common man, development or terrorism.
These issues were prominent in the recent Gujarat elections and helped Modi ride back to power again. The BJP has decided to keep these issues alive as was obvious from Singh’s inaugural speech.
With the party desperately looking for a young leader to replace the old guard, Modi is being seen as a potential leader at the national level. Other than Modi, BJP has no young leader of stature who commands a mass following.
Among the earlier generation, only its prime ministerial candidate L.K. Advani has mass appeal. Former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee has been keeping unwell and did not even appear at Sunday’s top leadership meet.
Vajpayee had also given a miss to the last annual party meet in Bhopal in 2007. Former vice-president and senior leader Bhairon Singh Shekhawat underwent a surgery last week and is recuperating. Both he and Vajpayee will not be attending any event in the three-day programme.
Modi’s admirers are not confined to the firebrand leaders in the party. It extends to the likes of film star-turned-BJP MP Hema Malini who was seen sharing some light moments with the chief minister at Sunday’s meet.
When asked about Modi’s rising popularity in the party cadre, BJP spokesperson Ravi Shankar Prasad smilingly said: “Modi is special for us.”