New Delhi: The Bharatiya Janata Party on Saturday appointed Mahendra Bhatt as the president of its Uttarakhand unit. Mahendra Bhatt is a former MLA of Badrinath (formerly Nandaprayag) in the Chamoli district. He has replaced Haridwar MLA Mahesh Kaushik as the BJP's state unit chief.
Notably, Mahendra Bhatt lost in the assembly polls held earlier this year.
A statement issued by BJP in this regard read, "National President of Bharatiya Janata Party, Hon'ble Shri Jagat Prakash Nadda ji has appointed Shri Mahendra Bhatt as State President of Uttarakhand Bharatiya Janata Party. This appointment will come into force with immediate effect."
ALSO READ | Monkeypox In India: Himachal Man With No Foreign Travel Suspected To Be Infected With Virus
As per news agency PTI, Mahendra Bhatt is a brahmin leader from the Garwhal region, and with this appointment, the BJP has tried to strike a balance between caste and region. Chief Minster Pushkar Singh Dhami is a Thakur from the Kumaon region.
PTI reported a senior party leader as stating that Mahendra Bhatt has risen through the ranks after working in Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad and the BJP's youth wing. He comes from an RSS background.
In March this year, the ruling BJP returned to power in Uttarakhand despite having three chief ministers in the five-year span. It bagged 47 seats, 11 more than the required majority in the 70-seat assembly. According to the Election Commission of India, Congress won 19 seats, while the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) registered victory in two constituencies.