Rajiv Pratap Rudy Wins Constitutional Club Polls
“It’s a beautiful victory for all the parliamentarians and all those who came to vote and endorse the relentless effort of the team over the last two decades. It’s a beautiful experience”: Rajiv Pratap Rudy
NEW DELHI: Maintaining his 25-year dominance in the Constitution Club of India’s management, BJP MP Rajiv Pratap Rudy defeated fellow party leader Sanjeev Balyan in one of the most keenly contested elections, which saw participation from prominent members, including BJP’s Amit Shah and Congress leader Sonia Gandhi, among other political heavyweights.
After the counting of votes, Rudy said he had won by over 100 votes, and members from his panel, which included representatives from various parties, had also secured victories.
“It’s a beautiful victory for all the parliamentarians and all those who came to vote and endorse the relentless effort of the team over the last two decades. It’s a beautiful experience,” Rudy said after his win.
The contest between Rudy and Balyan was also viewed as a power struggle between the BJP’s central leadership at 6-A DDU Marg, the party’s national headquarters, and Lucknow’s Kalidas Marg, the residence of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. According to BJP insiders, calls from Kalidas Marg went out not only to party MPs and former MPs but also to Opposition parliamentarians, including Congress members. Nishikant Dubey, who openly campaigned for Balyan, is known to be close to Union home minister Amit Shah. Despite being a five-time MP, Rudy, according to some in the BJP, is not considered close to the current party leadership.
Sources said that while gaining the support of members affiliated with Opposition parties, Rudy also managed to split BJP voters, most of whom were backing Balyan.
Both candidates refrained from making controversial remarks against each other, but the fiercely fought battle was widely referred to as “BJP vs BJP,” “Thakur vs Jat,” and “Bihar vs UP.”
Incumbent Rudy secured 391 votes against Balyan’s 291 for the post of Secretary (Administration). All members from his panel, except one, were elected to the 11-member Executive Committee, which now includes Naresh Agarwal, Prasun Banerjee, Pradeep Gandhi, Naveen Jindal, Deepender Singh Hooda, N. K. Premachandran, Pradip Kumar Varma, Jasbir Singh Gill, Kalikesh Narayan Singh Deo, Shrirang Appa Barne, and Akshay Yadav.
Congress’s Rajiv Shukla, DMK’s Tiruchi Siva, and former BRS MP A. P. Jitendher Reddy were elected unopposed as Secretary (Sports), Secretary (Culture), and Treasurer, respectively.
Out of a total of 1,295 voters, over 680 cast their votes in Tuesday’s election, one of the highest turnouts in the club’s history. Several Union ministers, including Piyush Goyal and Kiren Rijiju, along with Amit Shah, J.P. Nadda, and governors like Himachal Pradesh’s Shiv Pratap Shukla, participated amid intense lobbying.
Rudy, who had often won uncontested in the past, faced a rare challenge this year when Balyan, backed by BJP MP Nishikant Dubey from Jharkhand, entered the fray. Rudy’s personal rapport, Bihar roots, and the caste factor also played a role, while his opponent, though a former Union minister, was perceived as having little prior involvement in the club’s affairs.
Following the result, Dubey acknowledged that Rudy had received support from Opposition parties, while crediting Balyan, a Jat leader from western Uttar Pradesh, with enhancing the club’s prestige. “Balyan’s strength ensured that Sonia Gandhi and Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge came to vote,” he said, noting that neither Mrs Gandhi nor any UPA ministers had voted when her party colleague Jai Prakash Agarwal contested against Rudy in 2005 and 2010.
A club official added that until this election, Rudy had never faced a contest for the post since being nominated by then-Speaker G. M. C. Balayogi in 1999.