Smriti Irani, Ram Madhav Get Key Roles as Nitin Nabin Unveils New BJP National Team

Smriti Irani is back at the BJP’s organisational high table.

The former Union minister and Amethi MP has been appointed national general secretary as party president Nitin Nabin unveiled a new team built around experience, younger leadership and wider regional representation.

The newly constituted national team will hold its first introductory meeting on the morning of August 22, a party source said.

Irani joins former Tripura chief minister Biplab Kumar Deb, Sunil Bansal, Vinod Tawde, Gajendra Patel, Satish Poonia, Harish Dwivedi and Sanjay Bhatia as national general secretaries.

The appointments mark Nabin’s first major organisational overhaul after taking charge of the BJP. The party has pitched the team as one that will strengthen its grassroots network while advancing Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “Viksit Bharat 2047” agenda.

Nitin NabinI believe this is the BJP’s team for the future, the team for India’s future

He added that the office-bearers would take the prime minister’s vision to the grassroots, deepen the party’s engagement with its workers and expand its dialogue with the public.

The BJP has retained several experienced leaders as national vice presidents, including former Rajasthan chief minister Vasundhara Raje, former Uttarakhand chief minister Tirath Singh Rawat, Ram Madhav, Baijayant Jay Panda and D Purandeswari.

Rekha Verma, Varshaben Narendrabhai Doshi, Bharti Pravin Pawar, Manpreet Singh Badal, Lal Singh Arya, M Nagaraja, Tariq Mansoor and Madhuchandra Kar have also been appointed vice presidents.

Six of the 13 vice presidents are women, giving the new leadership team a stronger female presence.

Prime Minister Modi congratulated the office-bearers and said the team combined “organisational experience, energy and grassroots connect”.

“I am confident they will give their best in strengthening our Party and focussing on public service,” Modi posted on X.

The list of national secretaries spreads responsibilities across states and regions. It includes Kavita Patidar from Madhya Pradesh, K Surendran and Anil Antony from Kerala, Bhola Singh and Sangeeta Yadav from Uttar Pradesh, Pradip Varma from Jharkhand and Jagdish Ishwarbhai Patel and Rohan Gupta from Gujarat.

Sandeep Pathak, Swadesh Singh and Jai Prakash from Delhi; Phangnon Konyak from Nagaland; M Venkateshan from Tamil Nadu; Manoj Tigga from West Bengal; Siddharth Shambhu from Bihar; and Mriganka Deo Barman from Assam have also been named national secretaries.

Piyush Goyal will continue as the BJP’s national treasurer, while Rajya Sabha MP Tarun Chugh has been appointed central office in-charge.

The party has also installed new leaders at the head of its key organisational wings. Gujarat MP Hemang Joshi will lead the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha, while Chhattisgarh leader Roop Kumari Choudhary has been appointed president of the Mahila Morcha.

Anil Baluni will continue as media convenor, assisted by Ashish Usha Agrawal, Pradeep Bhandari and Siddharth Yadav. Deepak Mhaskey has been placed in charge of the party’s social media operations.

Union minister Kiren Rijiju described the list as a blend of experienced leaders and energetic new faces drawn from different states, regions and social groups.

Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta welcomed the representation given to women, while Union minister Manohar Lal Khattar hailed Sanjay Bhatia’s elevation as national general secretary.

Irani described her appointment as an “extraordinary responsibility” given to an ordinary party worker.

She said the new team would work under Modi and Nabin to strengthen the BJP and translate the “Nation First” and “Viksit Bharat” commitments into action.

The reshuffle gives Nabin his core organisational machinery. Its first test begins on August 22, when the veterans, returning heavyweights and younger faces sit down together to map the BJP’s next political push.

(With inputs from ANI)