‘ THE BJP’S STRENGTH IS ITS COHESION ’
Q. You played sports when you were young. Does that background help you now in taking decisions and running a political party?
A. Yes. I was a running champion and won both sprint and long-distance events. I was also a swimmer and was Bihar No. 4. I even swam across the Ganga in Patna six times. In both politics and sports, it is necessary to focus and be consistent. You also have to wait for opportunities, so you need to be patient.
Q. When you took over as BJP president from Amit Shah, the party had already won two back-to-back general elections along with several major assembly polls. What priorities did you set out for yourself when you assumed charge?
THE NADDA CREDO
“IF WE WANT INDIA TO BE PROGRESSIVE AND HAVE A DYNAMIC LEADER LIKE MODIJI, WHY SHOULD WE WASTE THE OPPORTUNITY? WE WILL FIGHT EVERY ELECTION AGGRESSIVELY AND TO WIN”
A. My thinking process is a little different. I believe I should give my best to whatever is given to me. I am a very content person and believe in my own ability to deliver. Generally, people think they will do this, this and this if they come into a certain position. I believe in continuity of things. So, after taking stock and strengthening the existing structure, you scale up. I never thought I had become president because there was a need for change. Amit Shah had put in five long years of effort, which yielded results. My responsibility was to push things forward in the same manner. We became the world’s largest political party under his presidentship. My responsibility was to connect with the new members and turn supporters into workers. I was not starting a new project, only taking it forward. That was my priority. He (Shah) brought the booth system to the page (of the voters’ list). I am trying to see the page gets converted into a committee.
Q. What does page getting converted to a committee mean?
A. It means each page should have a committee (which can canvass among those voters). That way, while we are going forward, I am strengthening the structure he has put in place—that is the continuity part. In the same way, the issues he had raised in different states had to be further strengthened, which we did. Amitji had experimented in Bengal for the past three to four years, and those experiments had shown results. Why should I have started my own experiments? So, we further strengthened [what we had]. When we work with team spirit, the results are good, there is continuity and effectiveness, and no confusion among the cadre. Our party has always run on a particular sanskar and sanskriti (tradition and culture).
BJP WORK ETHIC
“WHEN WE WORK WITH TEAM SPIRIT, THE RESULTS ARE GOOD, THERE IS CONTINUITY AND EFFECTIVENESS, AND NO CONFUSION AMONG THE CADRE. OUR PARTY HAS ALWAYS RUN ON A PARTICULAR SANSKAR AND SANSKRITI (TRADITION AND CULTURE)”
Q. Continuity apart, what are your other areas of focus?
The agenda has been set by Amit Shahji himself, [he has laid down] the
