Thiruvananthapuram: BJP president Amit Shah postponed his visit after the recent RSS meeting held in Kozhikode concluded that it was better to delay state president Kummanam Rajasekharan's Janaraksha Yatra.
RSS believes the state BJP leaders are neither serious in their work nor committed to strengthening the party. Mr Rajasekharan and his team were caught off guard when the central leadership informed them of the postponement.
Mr Shah was expected to flag the yatra off from Payyannur on Sept 7 and attend it for five days including a padayatra in Kannur and Thiruvananthapuram.
RSS’s two-day baitak was held Aug 25–26 in the absence of prantha karyavahak P. Gopalan Kutty Master who was convalescing after surgery. National general secretary and its point man in the BJP, Krishna Gopal Sharma alias Gopalji, also did not attend.
Apart from Mr Rajasekharan, other BJP leaders who attended the baitak included former state presidents O. Rajagopal, P. K. Krishnadas and V. Muraleedharan and two general secretaries M. T. Ramesh and Sobha Surendran.
A prominent BJP leader told DC that the general sentiment was that even before the medical college scam snowballed into a major controversy, the state leaders failed to rise to the expectations of Mr Shah.
“RSS reported to Mr Shah that the Janraksha Yatra would not be successful if held at this juncture. It might arouse interest in some parts like Payyannur, Kottayam and Thiruvananthapuram. The internal report was not favourable,” said a top leader.
Currently, fundraising campaigns for Kannur victims, Janmashtami, Navaratri and RSS’s gurudakshina are held across the state. Party workers were also raising funds for Janaraksha Yatra.
