BJP denies reports of rift within Uttarakhand unit over Dhami's elevation

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Sunday denied reports of rift within the Uttarakhand unit of the party over the choice of Pushkar Singh Dhami as the next Chief Minister of the state.

Uttarakhand BJP Chief Madan Kaushik, while speaking to ANI, denied the reports of rift within the party and said, "all is well within the party and everyone will attend the swearing-in."

Meanwhile, Uttarakhand Minister Bansidhar Bhagat when asked about MLAs' displeasure over the party choosing Pushkar Singh Dhami for Uttarakhand Chief Minister, called the reports a rumour.

"I read somewhere that 35 MLAs reached Delhi, please tell me who are these MLAs? These (reports) are mere rumours, our leaders stand firmly with the party," he said.

Rudraprayag MLA Bharat Singh Choudhary also denied the reports of displeasure within the party. "Pushkar Singh Dhami is a youth face and have good experiences working for the youth wing of the party. He has a good grip over youth and under his leadership, the party will get new energy and workers will move forward with new motivation," he said.

"Everyone is happy in Uttarakhand with this decision. Today only Chief Minister (Pushkar Singh Dhami) will take the oath," said BJP MLA Dhan Singh Rawat when asked on MLAs displeasure over party choosing Dhami.

As per sources, displeasure within senior party leaders and MLAs came to the fore after the meeting of the Legislative Party on Saturday that elected Dhami as the next Chief Minister of Uttarakhand.

The two-time MLA from Khatima constituency, Dhami (45) is set to take oath at 5 pm today and will be the youngest chief minister of Uttarakhand. Notably, Dhami has never been a minister in the state government and now is all set to swear in as the chief minister, overlooking many senior leaders.

The development comes ahead of polls for the 70 member Uttarakhand Assembly scheduled in early 2022.

The BJP swept the elections in 2017, winning 57 seats in the 70 member Assembly.

(ANI)

Also Read: Pushkar Singh Dhami to take oath as Uttarakhand CM today, Cabinet expansion later