Shah, Nadda hold discussion with Rajasthan BJP leaders on upcoming Assembly poll

Union Home Minister Amit Shah and BJP president J P Nadda on Wednesday held discussions with the party's Rajasthan leadership on the upcoming state Assembly election, amid a buzz that two central ministers might be asked to contest.

The speculation comes on the heels of the party naming three Union ministers and four other MPs in its second list of candidates for the Madhya Pradesh polls, also due by the year end.

Shah and Nadda arrived in Jaipur on a special plane on Wednesday evening and headed to a hotel near the airport where the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) core committee meeting started.

Party sources said Shah and Nadda first held a meeting with former chief minister Vasundhara Raje that lasted around 15 minutes.

After this, the two proceeded to meet senior leaders and discussed constituencies and election strategy. Feedback on four parivartan yatras that concluded recently were also taken.

Union minister and party's election in-charge for Rajasthan Pralhad Joshi, co-in-charge Nitin Patel, party's in-charge for Rajasthan Arun Singh, state president CP Joshi, Union ministers Gajendra Singh, Arjun Meghwal, Kailash Chaudhary, leader of opposition Rajendra Rathore, and deputy leader of opposition and former state president Satish Poonia were among those present the meeting, the sources said.

The meeting lasted around three hours.

Nadda and Shah held next round of meeting with party's national general secretary (org) BL Santosh, Pralhad Joshi, Nitin Patel, and Arun Singh, with Kuldeep Vishnoi and Vijaya Rahatkar also present, party sources said.

"The leaders brainstormed on how to win maximum number of seats in Mewar, Vagad, Shekhawati, Hadauti, Marwar regions and eastern Rajasthan in the Assembly and Lok Sabha elections," sources said.

"It was closely assessed in which constituencies the party is weak and what strategy is required to ensure win there. Detailed discussions on categories of seats, where the party has been winning, or losing, for the last three elections and where it is alternatively winning, were held," sources said.

"A clear message was given in the meeting that the party organisation is supreme and all workers must work together to ensure the victory of the party," they said.

According to sources, Union Jal Shakti minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat and Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal may be fielded in the Assembly poll, along with some other MPs.

Party leaders said ticket distribution and other poll-related issues was discussed in the meeting.

"They also discussed the feedback received from the four 'parivartan yatras' held in the state by the BJP," they said.

On Thursday morning, Nadda and Shah will meet local RSS leaders, party sources said.

Earlier when they arrived, Shah and Nadda were welcomed by CP Joshi and Vasundhara Raje at the Jaipur airport.

The visit by the two top leaders follows a rally held on Monday near Jaipur, addressed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to mark the completion of the 'yatras' that touched all 200 assembly constituencies in the state.

Hours before Shah's visit, a group of people from Ajmer South constituency staged a protest at the party office against local MLA Anita Bhadel.

"There is resentment among party workers against the MLA and she should not be given the ticket for the coming assembly elections," Shravan Kumar, a protester, told reporters.