Punjab BJP President's Reshuffle Triggers Public Rebellion

Months after Kewal Singh Dhillon took over as Punjab BJP president , a controversial organisational reshuffle has triggered a public rebellion within the party. Senior leaders and long-time workers have accused the state leadership of importing “Congress culture”, sidelining the “taksali BJP (authentic)” cadre and functioning in an authoritarian manner. The immediate trigger was the organisational reshuffle carried out under Dhillon, who assumed charge as state BJP chief in May. On July 18, the party appointed several district presidents, including Maninder Singh Kapial (Sangrur-1), Gaurav Kakkar (Faridkot), Satish Thakur Bawa (Hoshiarpur Urban), Yogesh Sapra (Hoshiarpur Rural) and Satish Asija (Muktsar). Barely a fortnight later, on August 2, all five were replaced without any official explanation. Sarjiwan Jindal replaced Kapial in Sangrur, Kuldeep Singh Bhangewala took over Muktsar, Sandeep Singh Brar became Faridkot president, while Sanjeev Manhas and Niten Gupta Nannu replaced the Hoshiarpur rural and urban presidents respectively. The same day, the BJP also announced a new state organisational team comprising 12 vice-presidents, 12 secretaries, five general secretaries and other office-bearers. In addition, councillor and deputy leader of Patiala Municipal Corporation Anuj Khosla, was named the state president of the Punjab BJP Yuva Morcha. Khosla had switched from Congress to BJP three years ago. The reshuffle has since snowballed into a political storm, with several leaders publicly questioning the functioning of state organisational secretary Manthri Srinivasulu and alleging that both he and Dhillon have become inaccessible to party workers. “They are busy with public programmes but hardly listen to workers. Had they interacted with the grassroots workers, such a blunder would not have happened,” said a senior BJP leader. Among the most vocal critics is Kapial. “My only slogan now is ‘sangathan mantri bhagao, Punjab BJP bachao (remove the organisational secretary, save Punjab BJP)’. I have been with the BJP for over two decades. What was my fault? Neither the organisational secretary nor the state president answers my calls. I will first stage a hunger strike outside the BJP state headquarters seeking the removal of the organisational secretary and, if required, protest outside the party’s Delhi office,” Kapial said. Former Punjab minister and senior BJP leader Tikshan Sud also questioned the manner in which the appointments were handled. “If they had to be removed within two weeks, why appoint them in the first place? Workers are naturally upset. Decisions are being imposed without consulting the grassroots. We will raise our concerns but remain in the BJP,” Sud said. Dhillon himself joined the BJP from the Congress in June 2022. His predecessor, Sunil Jakhar, who was appointed Punjab BJP president the following month after quitting the Congress, was replaced by Dhillon in May this year. Party insiders, however, attributed the Hoshiarpur episode to local factional politics, claiming the outgoing district presidents were associated with Sud’s camp while the new appointees enjoyed the backing of former Union minister Vijay Sampla. However, the discontent extends beyond the recent reshuffle. Senior BJP leader Bhupesh Aggarwal from Patiala alleged that the party’s original cadre had increasingly been sidelined following the induction of leaders from the Congress. “My father, Shambhu Prasadji, a former MLA and senior BJP leader, was killed by militants in 1987. I have devoted over 40 years to the BJP. But today the old guard is being ignored while politics is being run from palaces,” he said, in an apparent reference to meetings being held at Patiala’s Moti Bagh Palace, associated with former Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh’s family. Amarinder’s daughter, Jai Inder Kaur, is the state president of the BJP Mahila Morcha. Sources within the party offered different explanations for some of the reversals, claiming Kapial faced certain police cases while local units opposed the appointments of Kakkar and Asija. Even then, several leaders questioned why the initial list had been issued without adequate feedback from the grassroots. Several workers also complained that the new state leadership remained inaccessible. “We congratulated the new state president after his appointment and even met him personally, but the response was cold. It gives us the feeling that old BJP workers are now treated differently from leaders who have come from the Congress,” said a senior Mahila Morcha leader from Patiala. The controversy comes at a politically significant time, with the BJP seeking to strengthen its organisation ahead of the 2027 Assembly elections following the transition from Jakhar to Dhillon. Party leaders, however, rejected suggestions of a larger organisational crisis. State general secretary Anil Sarin said the BJP’s “family has grown bigger” and more organisational appointments were expected in the coming months. “Every worker is important. More responsibilities will be assigned before the 2027 polls and the BJP will fight the Assembly elections unitedly,” Sarin said. While Srinivasulu was unavailable for comment, Dhillon acknowledged the resentment within the party. “I am aware of the concerns and am reaching out to everyone. I was unwell over the past week and am still recovering, but I have remained in touch with party leaders. In a democracy, everyone has the right to express their views. We will address everyone’s concerns,” Dhillon said. Meanwhile, several BJP office-bearers from the Patiala unit staged a dharna outside the party’s locked district office at Anardana Chowk on Wednesday, alleging that loyal and long-serving workers were being ignored despite their commitment to the party. Sources said Dhillon met some disgruntled leaders on Wednesday night and is scheduled to hold a meeting with the BJP’s Patiala unit in Chandigarh on Thursday in an attempt to defuse the growing discontent.