Goswami vows to restore BJP glory

RANCHI: Dineshanand Goswami, who was appointed Jharkhand BJP president on Saturday, has said restoration of the party’s glorious era in the state, will be his top priority. Speaking to ET shortly after his appointment, Mr Goswami said: “Jharkhand region, during unified Bihar days, was known as a BJP stronghold.

There was a time when our party bagged all 14 Lok Sabha seats and 58 out of 81 assembly seats in the region. My effort will be to bring back party’s glorious era here.”

Even during the last Lok Sabha elections, the party won eight out of the 14 seats. However, it fared badly in the assembly elections with just 18 out of 81 seats, which was a big blow. In the absence of a clear majority, the party had to join hands with Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) and All Jharkhand Students’ Union (AJSU) to form the government in the state. “We will strengthen the party’s support base in Jharkhand. There are a few areas where we do not have good penetration. Our slogan will be Mazboot BJP, Mazboot Jharkhand,” he said.

The new BJP chief, who replaces Raghubar Das, said: “The Arjun Munda led coalition government has already made its priorities clear - good governance and development. I will strive to strike a balance between organization and the government.”

Mr Goswami conceded there was infighting “but it’s not much”. “There are differences of opinion but that is a sign of internal democracy. I will try to take along all in order to strengthen the party. We will work with the team spirit,” he added.