Early Times Report
Jammu, Dec 2: Intervention of Sangh Parivar finally helped Omi Khajuria to get installed as BJP district president for Jammu Rural as his election had become a bone of contention between two senior ministers of the party.
Despite clearance of his name for the post, the Minister for PHE Irrigation and Flood Control, Choudhary Sukhnandan was opposing his election because of Omi Khajuria's purported closeness with the Minister for Forest and Social Welfare, Bali Bhagat.
According to the sources, the outgoing district president, who wanted to get repeated, was also allegedly instrumental in fuelling the differences between two ministers over the choice of candidate while competitors of Omi Khajuria were understood to be part of the controversy.
Even as there was nothing substantial against Omi Khajuria, who has remained associated with the Sangh Parivar and BJP for the last two decades, Choudhary Sukhnandan had allegedly declared that he would not allow this man to be declared as district president at any cost, sources added.
It was only after the intervention of Sangh Parivar that Omi Khajuria was formally declared as BJP district president as Bali Bhagat was advised to remain silent after initial mood of taking on his minister colleague over the issue.
Pertinent to mention that both Choudhary Sukhnandan and Bali Bhagat are at loggerhead and their bitterness for each other is a well known fact not even in BJP but in the bureaucratic circles also.
Soon after the last Assembly elections, their dislike for each other had become talk of the town over the posting of SHO in a Police Station, having jurisdiction in constituencies of both the leaders, who later became minister in Mufti Syed-led PDP-BJP coalition Government.
In fact, sources said, that episode of SHO had encouraged Choudhary Sukhnandan to oppose the name for district president also as the police officer had been shifted following his resistance. |
