The Bharatiya Janata Party chief J P Nadda on Sunday said the party will not replace Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur and upcoming state assembly elections will be contested under his leadership.
AAP leader Manish Sisodia had earlier claimed that Union minister Anurag Thakur will replace Jai Ram Thakur.
The Bharatiya Janata Party chief J P Nadda on Sunday said the party will not replace Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur and upcoming state assembly elections will be contested under his leadership.
Nadda's comment came in the wake of a claim by Aam Aadmi Party leader Manish Sisodia that Union minister Anurag Thakur will replace Jai Ram Thakur as CM.
Nadda told reporters that Jai Ram Thakur will continue with his work and that he will not be replaced.
To another question, Nadda said none of the state ministers will be changed. He, however, said 10-15 per cent of sitting BJP MLAs may not get ticket in the elections.
He added 10-15 per cent BJP MLAs did not get ticket in the UP assembly elections and it is likely to happen in Himachal too.
Nadda also exuded confidence that the BJP will emerge as one of the main political parties in Punjab. He said the BJP used to contest only 23 of 117 Assembly seats in Punjab as a junior alliance partner but in the recently-held elections there, it contested on 68 seats as a senior alliance partner.
So, the BJP will emerge as a major ideological alternative in Punjab in the next elections, said Nadda.
The Assembly elections in Himachal Pradesh are scheduled for later this year.
While earlier the elections always remained a bipolar contest between the Congress and the BJP, this time the Aam Aadmi Party is trying to gain a foothold in the state. AAP had stormed to power in Punjab in the just-concluded Assembly polls.
With PTI inputs