MCD poll fallout: Delhi BJP chief Adesh Gupta resigns, Virendra Sachdeva gets interim charge

After the party’s loss in the recently held MCD elections, the party’s Delhi unit chief Adesh Gupta on Sunday quit from his position after directions from party president, JP Nadda. Gupta was replaced by vice-president Virendra Sachdeva who was appointed as the working president of the Delhi unit.

“The resignation of Adesh Gupta as Delhi BJP president is being accepted as per the direction of BJP national president Shri Jagat Prakash Nadda. Delhi unit vice president Virendra Sachdeva is being appointed working state unit chief till the next order,” read an order from party general secretary Arun Singh.

As he took over the responsibility, Sachdeva said that the party must now work for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. “We all have to work as collective leadership to make all the seven MP candidates of BJP victorious in 2024. We have to start preparing for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections without any rest,” Sachdeva told party leaders.

Gupta in a tweet welcomed Sachdeva on his appointment as working president of Delhi BJP.

"Hearty congratulations to my friend and old colleague Virendra Sachdeva on being appointed as working president of Delhi BJP," Gupta tweeted.

1

Sachdeva has discharged duties on various posts, including district presidents of Chandni Chowk and Mayur Vihar.

The demand for an organisational overhaul in the Delhi BJP had begun immediately after the party's loss in the MCD elections.

Amid the clamour for change, Gupta had in a meeting on the result day (Thursday) asserted he was not going to give up to "conspiracies" against him.

Gupta's performance has been under the scanner since he took charge as president of the Delhi BJP in June 2020. Under his leadership, the party failed to win bypolls to some MCD wards in 2021 as well as the Rajender Nagar Assembly bypoll.

Gupta’s quitting, coming after the end of BJP’s control over the municipalities of the Capital over a period of 15 years, also lays to rest speculation that the BJP will make a bid for the mayor’s post.

The Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party ended the BJP's 15-year-rule in the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) after winning the civic body elections with 134 seats (out of total 250 wards), while the BJP bagged 104.

After winning the elections, the AAP announced a division of Delhi into 12 zones, entrusting a senior leader with three zones each. The 12 zones announced by AAP are Civil Lines, Rohini, Najafgarh, Narela, Keshavpuram, West Zone, Sadar, Karol Bagh, Shahdara North, Central, South and Shahdara South.

(With PTI inputs.)