CHANDIGARH, October 24 (Aalimi Nation) – Bharatiya Janata Party national general secretary Smriti Irani has asked district presidents in Haryana to give up their security guards and reach out to people with humility, in her first visit to the state as the party's Haryana in-charge, party leaders said. The Smriti Irani Haryana BJP visit was held in Panchkula on October 22 and 23.
Message on security and outreach
Ms Irani told district presidents that leaders cannot mingle with people while surrounded by security personnel, and asked them to surrender their guards and connect without ostentation, according to party functionaries who attended. They noted that she holds Z-category security cover herself but often goes out without it.
An unnamed district president said her remarks were general but came against the backdrop of social media videos posted by some office-bearers showing their activities with guards in tow. A senior police officer said the state police headquarters has not formally provided security to district presidents, though most have been given one policeman each by their district police chiefs and some travel in convoys.
Organisational plan
Ms Irani was accompanied by co-in-charge Bhola Singh. Meetings were held at the state headquarters with state office-bearers, heads of party wings, district presidents and district in-charges. State president Archana Gupta and organisation general secretary Pawan Rana were among those present. Haryana BJP chief spokesperson Sanjay Sharma said the visit would give "fresh momentum to the party's organisational activities".
According to party leaders, the meetings set out a plan to prepare for the next Assembly election:
11-member committees to be formed or reconstituted at every booth within three months
"Panna pramukhs" to be appointed to oversee individual pages of the electoral rolls
state and district office-bearers to make district visits with overnight stays and review booth readiness
workers to help eligible people access Central and state welfare schemes
Review of lost seats
The BJP returned to power in Haryana for a third consecutive term in 2024, winning 48 seats in the 90-member Assembly. A party spokesperson said Ms Irani will assess the 42 seats the party did not win, looking at organisational weaknesses and the strength of local leadership.
Ms Irani took over as Haryana in-charge in a recent reshuffle, replacing Satish Poonia, according to reports. The meetings also covered coordination between the state government and the organisation, along with plans for upcoming programmes.
What next
The three-month window for booth committees will set the first visible test of the exercise. District visits by senior office-bearers are expected to follow, and further meetings with party legislators and other public representatives were on the schedule. The party has not announced any change in how security cover is allotted, and no response from the district presidents named in the reports was available.
