BJP’s new national team has 10 women, 6 minority community leaders

Former Union minister Smriti Irani has been appointed national general secretary, while former Rajasthan CM Vasundhara Raje Scindia, former Union minister D Purandeshwari and Uttar Pradesh MP Rekha Verma have been named national vice-presidents. (Photo: Agencies)

NEW DELHI: Bharatiya Janata Party on Monday announced its new national team under party president Nitin Nabin, with 10 women and six leaders from minority communities finding a place among the national office-bearers.Former Union minister Smriti Irani has been appointed national general secretary, while former Rajasthan CM Vasundhara Raje Scindia, former Union minister D Purandeshwari, and Uttar Pradesh MP Rekha Verma have been named national vice-presidents.Kavita Patidar and Sangeeta Yadav will serve as national secretaries. Roop Kumari Choudhary has been appointed president of the BJP‘s Mahila Morcha and Priti Gandhi has been made social media co-convenor.The new team also includes representatives from different minority communities. The BJP said it has accommodated one Sikh member, two Christian members and one member each from the Muslim, Jain and Parsi communities.Former Aligarh Muslim University vice-chancellor Prof Tariq Mansoor has been appointed national vice-president, while Kunwar Basit Ali will head the Minority Morcha as its president.Anil Antony, son of Congress veteran A K Antony, has been retained as a national secretary. Former Punjab finance minister Manpreet Singh Badal has been appointed national vice-president.According to the BJP, the new appointments provide representation to voices from 23 states and Union territories. The party described the team as a combination of administrative and organisational experience, youthfulness, geographical diversity and social inclusion.”Such balanced appointments empower the incoming national president’s executive team to operate with a profound awareness of the nation’s vast geographical landscape and regional nuances,” the BJP said in a statement.

The party has also given special prominence to the North-East, appointing three regional leaders from Tripura, Assam and Nagaland while retaining the dedicated North-East Coordination Cell under Sambit Patra.The committee includes four tribal representatives from West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and the North-East, including two women. Three members from Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Madhya Pradesh represent the Scheduled Castes (SC).