 "Modi discusses organisational issues with party leaders")
On Sunday, the PM is set to visit BJP national headquarters at 11, Ashoka Road, to meet other office bearers, workers and staff and thank them for their contributions in the party's victory in the recently concluded Lok Sabha elections.
Saturday's meeting is a precursor to the organisational overhaul the party will undergo in next month. Many office bearers are part of the government and would be replaced. It is also an attempt to keep the party vitalised and prevent a repeat of 1999, when the party weakened organisationally in several states when much of its leadership joined the government as ministers.
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This time also several of the front-ranking leaders have joined the government. Party president Rajnath Singh, three vice-presidents Jual Oram, Uma Bharti and Smriti Irani and three general secretaries Ananth Kumar, Thawar Chand Gehlot and Dharmendra Pradhan are now Union ministers. Party treasurer Piyush Goyal and two spokespersons Prakash Javadekar and Nirmala Sitharaman are also ministers.
BJP is likely to get a new president with general secretary Amit Shah, general secretary J P Nadda and the party's Gujarat unit in-charge Om Prakash Mathur in the race for the post.
Modi spent over an hour with the 10 general secretaries over breakfast and sought suggestions from them on improving governance and strengthening the party. He asked the party leaders to act as a bridge between the people and the government.
Among the party leaders who attended Saturday's meeting were BJP president Rajnath Singh, general secretary (organisation) Ram Lal and Amit Shah, Ananth Kumar, Dharmendra Pradhan, Varun Gandhi, Rajiv Pratap Rudy, Gehlot, Nadda, Tapir Gao and P Muralidhar Rao.
Senior BJP leaders said the party was conscious that the exodus of much of the current talent to the government could weaken the party organisationally. The meeting was to keep the party invigorated for future challenges, particularly the Assembly polls in several states in the next few months.
Elections are due in Maharasthra, Haryana, Jharkhand, Jammu and Kashmir, Delhi, and Bihar in 2014-15. The party also wants to be prepared for the assembly elections in 2016 in states of West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Assam and Puducherry.
"Inspired by motivational message from Hon'ble PM Shri @narendramodi ji, at a meeting with party GSs, to serve party and nation with renewed vigour (sic)," party general secretary Varun Gandhi tweeted after the meeting.
Sources said Modi asked the party general secretaries to continue to act like a bridge between the government and the common people. The meeting also discussed mechanisms that need to be evolved to include suggestions from common people and party supporters to the government for effective and good governance.