SHIMLA: Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh announced the appointment of Rajeev Bindal as the president of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Himachal Pradesh on Tuesday.

Singh expressed confidence that Bindal's vast experience and dedication will strengthen the party's organisation in the state.

In a post on X, Dr Singh said, "Proud to announce Dr. Rajeev Bindal ji as the BJP Himachal Pradesh State President. With his vast experience and dedication, I am confident he will strengthen the organisation and work tirelessly to realise PM Modi's vision of Viksit Bharat 2047."

Bindal, was re-elected unopposed as he emerged as the sole nominee for the post. The nomination process for post of BJP president and eight National Council members took place in Shimla yesterday.

In the years 2000, 2003 and 2007, Bindal won the Solan Assembly elections. In 2012 and 2017 he was elected from the Nahan Assembly constituency.

Previously, he was the health minister in the Prem Kumar Dhumal-led government from 2007-12. He was elected as the Speaker of the Assembly in 2017. He later became the party president.

Speaking to ANI in Shimla yesterday, Rajeev Bhardwaj, Member of Parliament and BJP's state election in-charge for the organisational polls, shared details of the development.
"Today, we had to conduct the election for the state president and select eight members for the National Council. The process began, and the nomination window was open from 12:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. During this time, we received only one nomination for the post of state president," said Bhardwaj."Three separate sets of proposers supported that nomination. One set was filed under the leadership of Jairam Thakur, endorsed by all MLAs. The second set had support from all MPs under the leadership of Anurag Thakur. The third set was backed by all party office bearers under the leadership of Govind Thakur," he added.

Bhardwaj also noted that several former BJP state presidents and senior leaders were part of the support groups that endorsed Bindal's nomination. He stated that, along with the state BJP president, the election of National Council members has also been conducted, and the process is now complete.

"For the eight National Council members, we received two sets of proposers for each name. The last date for withdrawal of nominations is 5 PM today. The final announcement of the names will be made tomorrow at 11 AM in Shimla, at Peterhoff, under the supervision of the central election observers," said the state election in-charge.

Bhardwaj outlined that the party had initiated the election notification on Sunday, and the electoral college list was also displayed accordingly."We had published the notification yesterday. The list of electors for the state president's election was also displayed. The nomination and withdrawal phases went smoothly. The entire process has now been completed," he asserted.

Emphasising the BJP's tradition of consensus and unity, Bhardwaj said collective decision-making is important in the BJP.

"The BJP has a tradition of mutual coordination, trust, and collective decision-making. This entire process from nomination to selection was carried out in that spirit, with discipline at all levels."He further expressed gratitude toward senior party leaders and the organisational election team."K Laxman was our national election officer. I was appointed as the state election officer, while Sanjeev and Rajeev Saijal were designated as city election officers. I'm happy to report that the process was completed smoothly. I especially want to thank our senior leadership in the state for their wholehearted support," Bhardwaj told ANI.