5 Union Ministers In UP Among BJP's Key Poll Appointments For 5 States

Eyeing the assembly polls in five states next year, the BJP has chosen its top leaders to oversee the election preparation. Five Union Ministers - Dharmendra Pradhan, Anurag Thakur, Arjun Ram Meghwal, Annapruna Devi and Shobha Karandlaje - have been tasked with Uttar Pradesh ahead of the crucial polls in the state where the BJP is trying to retain power amid a massive campaign by protesting farmers.

Former Haryana Minister Captain Abimanyu and Rajya Sabha MP Saroj Pandey are also among other leaders deployed in the state. 

Regionwise deployment has also been the focus while making the key appointments in UP. Lok Sabha MP Sanjeev Bhatia will be overseeing western UP. National vice treasurer Sudhir Gupta will be overseeing the election preparation in Kanpur and Arvind Menon will be in charge for Gorakhpur.

Farmer leader Rakesh Tikait launched a campaign against the party in Muzzafarnagar on Sunday. Over a period of next six months, demonstrators said, they will continue to run a campaign against the BJP.

For Punjab, another state where the BJP has faced huge backlash from the farmers over three controversial laws, Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat will be in command.

Union Ministers Hardeep Singh Puri, Meenakshi Lekhi and Lok Sabha MP Vinod Chawda will also strategize for the state polls.

As Congress eyes a comeback in Punjab, the differences and recurring clashes between Navjot Singh Sidhu and Chief Minister Amarinder Singh have taken away the focus from the party's governance and performance in the state during the last five years. Akali Dal and Arvind Kejriwal's AAP are other key contenders in the state.

In Goa, former Chief Minister of neighbouring Maharashtra Devendra Fadnavis has been chosen as the in charge. Union Minister G Kishan Reddy will be the co incharge, along with junior minister Darshana Jardosh.

Bhupendra Yadav, who entered the Union Cabinet in July in a major reshuffle, has been tasked with Manipur. He has long been the go-to person for the BJP top brass for handling a variety of challenges and issues. Junior Minister Pratibha Bhaumik is the co incharge along with Ashok Singhal.

In Uttarakhand, which has seen two Chief Ministers taking oaths since the start of this year, Union Minister of Parliamentary Affairs Pralhad Joshi, Locket Chatterjee and RP Singh will call the shots.