Rajasthan Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma, BJP central observer Vijay Rupani with newly appointed state BJP President Madan Rathore, at party office in Jaipur on Saturday, February 22, 2025.
| Photo Credit: ANI via X/BhajanlalBjp
Rajya Sabha member Madan Rathore was re-elected unopposed as Bharatiya Janata Party’s Rajasthan unit president here on Saturday (February 22, 2025), seven months after he was first appointed to the post. Along with Mr. Rathore, 25 members of the BJP’s National Council were also elected from the State to take part in the party’s national presidential election.
As no other candidate had filed a nomination for the party’s State chief, election in-charge and former Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani formally declared Mr. Rathore’s appointment at a function held at the BJP State headquarters here. Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma, former Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje and BJP State in-charge Radha Mohan Das Agarwal were among those present.
Mr. Rathore, 70, is a native of Pali district and was MLA twice during Ms. Raje’s two tenures as Chief Minister between 2003-08 and 2013-18. He was elected as a Rajya Sabha member from Rajasthan in February 2024. Five sets of nomination papers were submitted on Friday (February 21, 2025) and all proposals had Mr. Rathore’s name as the BJP State president.
An Other Backward Class (OBC) leader belonging to the Ghanchi community, Mr. Rathore was earlier appointed the BJP State president on July 26, 2024, replacing C.P. Joshi, who had offered to resign following the party’s poor performance in the Lok Sabha election. His appointment was perceived as a step by the BJP to balance the caste equations ahead of the State Assembly by-elections at seven seats.
Addressing the party workers, Mr. Rathore said they must stay united in support of the government and convey any shortcomings to the leadership within the framework of discipline. Mr. Sharma said the BJP was the only party which was functioning with “internal democracy”, and the party’s office-bearers were elected with consensus and cooperation.
Before moving on to mainstream politics by joining the BJP in mid-1980s, Mr. Rathore was a pracharak with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh in Pali. He held various posts in the Pali district unit of the BJP, including the district president, before he joined the party’s State unit in Jaipur.
During the 2023 State Assembly election, Mr. Rathore announced that he would contest as an Independent candidate from the Sumerpur seat in Pali, as he was denied ticket by the BJP. He later withdrew from the contest reportedly following an intervention made by the party’s top leadership.
Published – February 22, 2025 08:26 pm IST