The BJP on Sunday appointed Om Prakash Dhankar, a former Cabinet Minister, as party Haryana president.
The appointment made by national president J.P. Nadda will come into immediate effect, said an official statement issued by national general secretary Arun Singh.
Mr. Dhankar held the Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare portfolio in the previous Manohar Lal-led BJP government in Haryana. He lost the 2019 Assembly election from the Badli seat. He will be replacing Subhash Barala. Mr. Dhankar had also been the national president of the BJP’s Kisan Morcha twice.
With the appointment of Mr. Dhankar who hails from the Jat community, the BJP has struck a balance between the Jat and the non-Jat communities. The electoral politics in Haryana predominately revolve around them. Jats account for 29% of the population and are a politically influential community.
Chief Minister Manohar Lal is a non-Jat while Mr. Barala belongs to the Jat community.
