Gadkari faces real acid test in UP polls: survey

The ORG-Pioneer survey on performance evaluation of Gadkari, who recently completed one year as party chief, said what lies ahead for Gadkari may not be a bed of roses in the backdrop of the Bihar verdict.

The sample of 2,143 respondents for the survey was drawn from eight representative cities spread over eight major states including Delhi, Patna and Lucknow as also Bangalore and Kolkata.

His acid test in UP could be reflected from the fact captured in the survey which saw the "least positive response" in UP on the level of satisfaction on Gadkari's contribution with no response from over 60 per cent respondents.

Thus, the survey showed that the challenge before Gadkari lay not only to turnaround and rejuvenate the party in UP but also to project BJP as the viable and preferred alternative.

The survey sponsored by daily "Pioneer" claimed that in Bihar elections Nitish Kumar's past performance propped up JD(U)'s increased seats while Gadkari's skills and qualities ensure an unprecedented strike rate for the party.

In the survey, nationally 74 per cent respondents supported that Gadkari continue as party chief. Among the states, the highest support for his continuance was recorded in Karnataka followed closely by Maharashtra. The rating fell below 60 per cent only in Assam.

The survey claimed that Gadkari's tactics to make the rival factions in BJP to jointly sort out the candidates for each constituency, the thrust of selection only by merit as well as his firm handling of the dissidents led to the remarkable success.