Brief breather for Uttarakhand CM, crisis in state BJP still not over

By Kumar Gaurav
Dehradun (Uttarakhand) [India], March 9 : Uttarakhand Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat left Delhi for Dehradun on Tuesday but sources in the Bharatiya Janata Party indicated that the crisis in the state unit is still not over.
However, the party officially maintained that there was no crisis in the state unit.
"There is no crisis in the BJP and Chief Minister Rawat is working well in the state. There are no corruption charges against him, so what is the need to change the Chief Minister?" BJP General Secretary, incharge of the state, Dushyant Gautam told ANI.
Sources in the party's Central leadership, however, are yet to confirm that Rawat will continue to lead the government.
Currently, the BJP is trying to calm the rebellion within the state unit. The Cabinet is also likely to be reshuffled soon.
While speaking to ANI, Gautam did accept that there is some discomfort within the party, but he called this normal as it "happens during an election year". He added that meetings had been held and a conclusion would be reached soon.
"Process as far as the change of guard is concerned, is being hyped by media. We have completed four years in government and due to the welfare policies of this government, we continue to enjoy the trust of the people," he added.
Though Gautam says there is no problem in the government, sources strongly indicated that the crisis is not yet over. If rebels don't calm down after the Cabinet reshuffle, the BJP is not likely to project Rawat as the Chief Ministerial face for the upcoming state Assembly polls scheduled for 2022.
When asked about this, Gautam said, "We fight the election on collective leadership. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is the only face of the party."
Earlier, amid speculations about a leadership change, Rawat met BJP President JP Nadda at the latter's residence in the national capital on Monday night.