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By:

Abhijit Mulye

21 August 2024 at 4:59:11 pm

Tawde’s journey from exile to UP fortress

Mumbai: In 2014, when Narendra Modi first ascended to the Prime Minister’s office, he entrusted the politically complex and electorally decisive state of Uttar Pradesh to his closest confidant, Amit Shah. Now, in a move that has sent ripples through the corridors of power, the Bharatiya Janata Party has bestowed that exact strategic mantle upon its National General Secretary, Vinod Tawde. With the crucial Uttar Pradesh assembly elections looming just a year away in 2027, Tawde’s appointment...

Tawde’s journey from exile to UP fortress

Mumbai: In 2014, when Narendra Modi first ascended to the Prime Minister’s office, he entrusted the politically complex and electorally decisive state of Uttar Pradesh to his closest confidant, Amit Shah. Now, in a move that has sent ripples through the corridors of power, the Bharatiya Janata Party has bestowed that exact strategic mantle upon its National General Secretary, Vinod Tawde. With the crucial Uttar Pradesh assembly elections looming just a year away in 2027, Tawde’s appointment as the state in-charge is a masterstroke of political rehabilitation and trust. While many political pundits anticipated Tawde might replace Dharmendra Pradhan in the Modi cabinet, the high command had a far more vital organizational mission in mind for the leader who, remarkably, found himself politically uprooted from his home turf of Maharashtra barely seven years ago. Serving as the Education Minister in the Devendra Fadnavis-led Maharashtra government, Tawde was a prominent and powerful face of the state BJP. However, the political winds shifted abruptly prior to the 2019 assembly elections. In a move that shocked many, his portfolios were drastically curtailed and handed over to Ashish Shelar, followed by the ultimate political blow: he was denied a ticket to contest from his stronghold constituency of Borivali. Whispers of a fierce, underlying political rivalry with Fadnavis flooded political circles, with widespread speculation suggesting that the Chief Minister had orchestrated the systematic downsizing of Tawde’s administrative influence to neutralize a potential competitor. Faced with a sudden, humiliating political exile, Tawde stood at a crossroads where many regional leaders opt for rebellion. Instead, he chose the path of extreme discipline, absorbing the setback and redirecting his focus entirely on national politics. Leveraging his deep, foundational roots in the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), Tawde utilized his vast organizational network—a residual strength that survived his loss of ministerial power. His political resurrection was championed by the then-BJP President J.P. Nadda, a fellow ABVP alumnus who shared a profound camaraderie with the exiled leader. Recognizing his untapped potential, Nadda brought him to Delhi, initiating a comeback that began with his appointment as the Haryana in-charge in 2020 and culminated in his rapid elevation to National General Secretary in 2021. Tawde’s tenure as an organizational architect quickly yielded dividends. After stabilizing the party apparatus in Haryana, he was thrown into the politically volatile cauldron of Bihar in 2022. The BJP was navigating an exceptionally hostile environment marred by the shifting allegiances of Nitish Kumar and the looming shadow of the RJD. Immersing himself in booth-level micro-management and delicate alliance negotiations, Tawde orchestrated a remarkable consolidation. His strategic maneuvers were instrumental when Nitish Kumar eventually returned to the NDA fold in 2023, paving the way for the coalition’s formidable performance in the subsequent 2024 Lok Sabha and 2025 Bihar Assembly elections. As his stock rose, the central leadership began entrusting him with prestige assignments that transcended typical state electoral politics. Tawde emerged as a highly effective backroom coordinator during the 2022 presidential election of Droupadi Murmu, seamlessly managing cross-party liaisons across multiple states. He replicated this managerial success during C.P. Radhakrishnan’s vice-presidential election in 2025. Beyond electoral arithmetic, Tawde spearheaded massive national outreach initiatives, leading the ‘Sanghatan Parv 2024’ membership drive and coordinating complex central campaigns ranging from ‘Har Ghar Tiranga’ to the delicate domestic communications during ‘Operation Ganga’ in Ukraine. Vinod Tawde has not merely returned from the political wilderness; he has conquered it, transforming a harsh regional sidelining into an undisputed mandate at the very heart of the nation’s political epicenter.

Pune set for Rahul’s women-centric outreach

Mumbai: The Maharashtra Congress is gearing up for its massive students-GenZ outreach programme in Pune on August 22, the fourth edition of its ‘Chhatron Ki Goonj’ series, which will be held as an all-women initiative for the first time and hosted by Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi.

 

The event, expected to draw around 10,000 young women, is being positioned by the Congress as a major outreach programme aimed at engaging with women students and the wider GenZ community on issues concerning their education, employment, safety and future.

 

Considering Pune’s importance as Maharashtra’s academic, IT and cultural capital, the Congress has planned a women- and GenZ-focused political engagement. The choice of Pune also carries historical significance, given the city’s association with pioneers of women’s education and social reform.

 

Pune is closely associated with social reformer Savitribai Phule, who, along with Fatima Sheikh, helped establish the country’s first school for girls at Bhide Wada in 1848. The city is also associated with Rajmata Jijabai Bhosale, who nurtured her son Shivaji Maharaj at Lal Mahal. Shivaji Maharaj later went on to establish the Maratha Empire and champion the idea of Hindavi Swaraj.

 

A spokesperson for ‘Chhatron Ki Goonj’ said that Gandhi’s interaction in Pune would focus particularly on issues affecting young women. These would include women’s rights, safety and equality, problems faced by girls in education, socio-economic challenges, workplace insecurity and discrimination, employment opportunities, freedom of expression and prospects for the future.

 

The Pune programme follows three earlier editions of the students’ outreach series held in Kota in Rajasthan, Dehradun in Uttarakhand and Prayagraj in Uttar Pradesh since June.

 

The earlier editions largely focused on concerns surrounding examination paper leaks, irregularities in examination systems, problems in the education sector and delays in recruitment and employment. These issues have emerged as major concerns among students and their parents, particularly amid growing competition for government jobs and professional opportunities.

 

The Pune gathering, however, is expected to have a broader focus because of its women-centric format. Participants could also raise issues concerning recent student protests, police action against female students and alleged attempts by some state governments to suppress the voice of GenZ.

 

The Congress has also sought to use the programme to attack the BJP-led governments at the Centre and in Maharashtra over issues concerning examinations and recruitment.

 

Maharashtra Congress president Harshwardhan Sapkal alleged that examination-related irregularities and paper leaks had become widespread under the BJP.

 

“The Vyapam scam has now spread nationwide,” Sapkal alleged, referring to the examination and recruitment scandal that came to light in Madhya Pradesh. He claimed that major examinations, including NEET, TET and judicial recruitment tests, had been affected by paper leaks.

 

Sapkal claimed that at least 154 examination papers had leaked during the past 12 years. He also alleged that the BJP’s proposed ‘One Nation, One Examination’ system could facilitate the alleged “sale” of question papers to specific castes and classes.

 

The Congress leader said the Pune event would provide young women with an opportunity to directly voice their concerns and interact with Gandhi.

 

The programme has also triggered a political response from the ruling BJP. Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has criticised the ‘Chhatron Ki Goonj’ initiative, prompting Sapkal to hit back.

 

Sapkal said the BJP was free to send representatives to the Pune programme, which he described as open to all.

 

He alleged that the BJP was concerned by the response to the Congress initiative and was organising a ‘Tiranga Yatra’ to counter it.

 

Meanwhile, Sapkal, along with senior Congress leaders including Balasaheb Thorat, Satej ‘Bunty’ Patil, AICC leaders B M Sandeep and Rehana Riyaz Chishti, and state leaders Mohan Joshi, Ramesh Bagwe, Atul Londhe, Deepti Chaudhari and Prashant Jagtap, visited the SSPM grounds on Thursday.

 

The leaders reviewed preparations at the venue, including organisational and security arrangements, ahead of the August 22 event.

 

‘No match-fixing’
MPCC President Harshwardhan Sapkal took potshots at Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis’s criticism of ‘Chhatraon Ki Goonj’, saying the BJP was welcome to sed anyone to the open-for-all Pune event to be addressed by Rahul Gandhi.
 
“The CM is under the impression that this will be akin to the GenZ interaction of RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat with a select few students, like a ‘match-fixing’. Seeing the overwhelming response to our event, the BJP is rattled and is organizing a ‘Tiranga Yatra’ to counter it,” smiled Sapkal.

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