No change for now, Sampla to remain state BJP chief

Chandigarh : BJP national president Amit Shah has asked Vijay Sampla to continue as the president of the state unit till further orders, while turning down his offer to resign due to the party’s poor performance in the state Assembly elections. The party won just three of the 23 seats it contested.
Confirming the development, party sources said the message was important in the context that certain discontented leaders were building up a case for his replacement. It was being rumoured that the party was looking for a replacement as Sampla failed to carry along the top leadership of the state.
The sources said Sampla had offered to resign citing the party policy of one man, one post, and saying that he would prefer to hold his place as the Cabinet Minister. Shah has, however, asked him to continue.
“Punjab is not on the priority list of the party. Moreover, we just had elections. There is no urgency for a change,” a party source said.
Nevertheless on the ground level, the BJP is witnessing hectic lobbying among potential candidates for the top post. Leading the race are former presidents Kamal Sharma and Ashwani Sharma. Another name doing the rounds is that of Rajya Sabha member Shwait Malik. While the senior leaders were learnt to be using their connections, younger leaders — Narender Parmar (Pathankot), Parveen Bansal (Ludhiana) and Rakesh Rarhore (Jalandhar) — are betting on their neutral and clean image, the source said.