Khanduri finally steps down in Uttarakhand

Finally, heads have begun to roll in the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) after its debacle in the recent Lok Sabha polls. B C Khanduri resigned today as Uttarakhand chief minister owning ‘moral responsibility’ for the party’s defeat in all the five Lok Sabha seats in the hill state.

Khanduri sent his resignation to party President Rajnath Singh on Monday night. Party sources said he was asked to do so by the party brass, which had finally decided to take the festering rebellion in the state unit seriously. B S Koshiyari, a former chief minister and a disgruntled leader, had recently given up patience on the change in leadership, and threatened a revolt.

Koshiyari had even resigned from his Rajya Sabha seat, only to take it back later, to build pressure on the central leadership for Khanduri’s removal. The rebel group had alleged that Khanduri’s “style of functioning” had isolated party workers which, in turn, had resulted in Uttarakhand being the only BJP-ruled state where the party could not win a single seat in the recent polls.

However, despite Khanduri’s resignation, the BJP’s troubles in the hill state are unlikely over. In his letter to Singh, Khanduri is reported to have asked the party to “find the real reasons for the BJP’s shocking defeat in the state”. He is apparently hinting at an internal sabotage by the Koshiyari camp in the election.

“Within 15 days of the BJP losing all the five Lok Sabha seats, how come we won Kapkote (Assembly constituency) with a huge margin?” Khanduri asked reporters. The BJP had won the Kapkote Assembly by-election, which was represented for several terms by Koshiyari.

Meanwhile, the BJP brass has summoned all the 35 legislators for consultation here tomorrow. The legislative party meeting would elect their new leader. Party sources said in view of the deep rivalries between the Koshiyari and Khanduri camps, a dark horse was likely to be chosen as the new leader.

Party sources also said Khanduri could be later moved to the Centre as the party’s general secretary.

However, the BJP’s troubles in the hill state are unlikely to be over. First, Khanduri himself feels ‘victimised’ as he believes that he was asked to quit under pressure from the rebels.

Second, the BJP state legislature party has a wafer thin majority in the state Assembly and the government is under the constant threat of falling in case even one leader decides to resign. In the 69-member Legislative Assembly, the BJP has 35 members. The Congress is looking for an opportunity to bring down the government.