New Delhi [India], August 17 (ANI): The team of office-bearers of BJP President Nitin Nabin announced on Monday has a significant presence of women in line with the party's effort to give women more representation at various organisational levels.
The team of 65 office-bearers announced on Monday has 12 women. Of the 13 Vice Presidents announced by the party, six are women. Former Union Minister Smriti Irani has been given a key role as party General Secretary.
Former Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhra Raje, former Andhra Pradesh BJP Chief D Purandeswari, former Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare Bharti Pravin Pawar, and party leaders Varshaben Narendrabhai Doshi, Rekha Verma and Dr Madhuchanda Kar have been appointed Vice-Presidents. Vasundhra Raje and Rekha Verma have been retained as Vice Presidents.
The national Secretaries include party MPs Kavita Patidar, Phangnon Konyak and Sangeeta Yadav
BJP MP Roopkumari Choudhary will head the Mahil Morcha in place of Vanathi Srinivasan.
Preeti Gandhi has been made social media co-convenor.
The number of women office-bearers in the new team is more than in the outgoing team. The outgoing team had no woman general secretary.
BJP has been pushing for early reservation for women in Lok Sabha and assemblies based on delimitation that would also lead to an increase in the number of seats in the lower House of Parliament.
In his Independence Day speech on Saturday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had recalled the contribution of women in nation-building.
Noting their role in the spread of technology and strengthening armed forces, the Prime Minister highlighted the massive economic empowerment of resilient rural women, expressing immense pride in confident tribal daughters manufacturing advanced microchips in Sanand after technical overseas training.
Noting that the ambitious target for financially empowered rural women has been surpassed with the achievement of three crore Lakhpati Didis, he set a bold new target of 6 crore to drive regional transformation. "The incredible confidence I saw in those daughters who are today doing the complex work of chip manufacturing truly impressed me," he said.
Commending the highly capable leadership provided by women serving as public representatives, the Prime Minister appealed to all political parties to end decades of delay and swiftly implement the one-third legislative reservation for women in Parliament and state assemblies.
"Come forward in the honor of those women, take the credit, but absolutely give my mothers and sisters their rightful due," PM Modi said.
The new team of BJP office-bearers also has sizeable representation from states going to the polls early next year including Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Punjab. (ANI)
Sizeable presence of women in BJP Chief Nitin Nabin's new team; Vasundhra Raje among six women vice presidents, Smriti Irani appointed general secretary
