Second term for Nitin Gadkari as BJP president

Nitin Gadkari has been given a second term as president of the Bhartiya Janata Party.

Zeenews Bureau

Mumbai: : Decks were cleared for a second consecutive term for Nitin Gadkari as BJP President with the national executive on Thursday amending the party constitution to facilitate the move.

Gadkari’s current term as president ends in December when he is expected to get a second term, thereby giving him a tenure upto December 2015.

A resolution amending the party constitution was moved at the national executive meeting here by former party chief Rajnath Singh and seconded by another former party chief M Venkiah Naidu.

Announcing the passage of the amendment, party general secretary Jaiprakash Nadda told reporters that the provision would also be applicable in case of state and district presidents.

Besides amending the relevant provisions in the constitution, the national executive also set in motion the process of organisational elections.

Senior leader Thawarchand Gehlot was appointed electoral officer for the purpose.

It also initiated membership drive, making party leader Radha Mohan Singh incharge of the task.

Zeenews.com had predicted that the way would be paved for Nitin Gadkari’s second term as president once party leader Sanjay Joshi - known as one of the biggest critics of Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi – would resign from the party’s national executive.

Hours before the start of BJP meet in Mumbai today, party leader Sanjay Joshi - known as one of the biggest critics of Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi - has resigned from the party’s national executive.

In his resignation letter sent to BJP president Nitin Gadkari, Joshi stated that he was resigning from the National Executive Committee under pressure from top leaders like Narendra Modi.

Modi decided to attend the party’s national executive meeting in Mumbai only after Joshi handed his resignation.

Modi has so far maintained a stoic silence on the whole issue.

Modi has been upset with party president Nitin Gadkari after he reinstated former general secretary Sanjay Joshi in the party and made him the in-charge of the Uttar Pradesh Assembly Elections.

Joshi had to quit his post in 2005 after his purported sex CD hit headlines.

Modi had not turned up to campaign in Uttar Pradesh, even as Gadkari was keen that he did. He even skipped the last party conclave in Delhi held in December last year. Since then the Gujarat CM and Gadkari have not been in the best of terms.

With PTI inputs

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