Shah's elevation is also a sign of Modi's political power. The prime minister overrode opposition within the BJP to Shah’s candidature who was charged with murder in connection with the deaths of three people allegedly killed in 2005 by Gujarat police.

In the earlier NDA, Atal Behari Vajpayee was the boss but the party chiefs were lightweights. A heavyweight, LK Advani, became home minister; he was succeeded by Kushabhau Thakre, Bangaru Lakshman, Jena Krishnamurthy and Venkaiah Naidu. All these leaders didn’t have any personal electoral profile to boast of.

In the UPA-I and UPA-II, the party president was all powerful , the prime minister being a political light weight. In the present NDA, we have a powerful Prime Minister in Modi and a powerful party President in Shah. There is no question of the two coming to collision as Shah has long been Modi’s confidant and valuable political asset.

There was time when Modi and his aide, Shah, were treated as outsiders, even interlopers, in a party that defined itself mostly by its Delhi based national leadership. Today two men from Gujarat have firmly taken control of the BJP establishment, silencing rivals and dissenters. Even the RSS, which attempted to tighten its grip over the party after forcing L K Advani to step down as party President in wake of the Jinnah speech, seemed to fall in line. There is talk of a generational shift in the party under 49-year-old Shah.

Throughout the Gujarat years, Modi relied heavily on Shah’s organizational skills. The crowning glory that catapulted both to the heart of political power was amazing performance in Uttar Pradesh, where the BJP got a stunning 71 seats. Shah worked tirelessly for this victory and it is no wonder that the party now looks to him to streamline the organization at the national level and ensure that it stays fit for the upcoming elections in Maharashtra, Jharkhand and Haryana. If anyone can pull off the feat of extending the Modi wave, which is losing its earlier momentum because of all round price rise, into the assembly elections, it is Shah.

The Haryana and Maharashtra elections are crucial for the BJP as they could further consolidate its grip and marginalize the Congress even more. To have Shah as the Chief will further boost the morale of the rank and file of the party in these states.

Apart from bright side, Shah has also a bleak side; he carries with him the shadow of the Sohrabuddin fake encounter cases in which he has been charge-sheeted as the key accused and conspirator. In 2010, he had to resign as minister of state for home affairs in Gujarat and serve time even in jail. More recently, he was banned by the Election Commission from addressing public meetings because of a “hate speech” in UP’s riot-torn western region; the ban was lifted, but only after Shah promised to mind his language.

In between Shah’s name figured in the Snoopgate case, in which the Gujarat Government has been accused of deploying state machinery to stalk a young woman. Thus Shah’s career in Gujarat and his successes in UP have an undesirable aspect that could return to haunt the party as it seeks to spread into newer regions in a year of crucial assembly elections.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated his closest confidant on becoming BJP President and expressed confidence that the party will become stronger under his leadership. “My best wishes to Amit Shah on becoming the BJP President. I am sure that under his leadership, the party will expand and strengthen further,” he said. The Prime Minister said “Amit Bhai started his journey as an ordinary Karyakarta (worker) and has repeatedly proved himself through tireless hardwork and determination.”

With Amit Shah’s appointment as the BJP’s President, it stamps the end of Vajpayee-Advani era in the party. Amit Shah is the first BJP member who was not groomed under any of the top three leaders of the BJP. Neither AB Vajpayee nor LK Advani and nor Murli Manohar Joshi groomed Amit Shah under them. The first BJP member who went on to make it a big without any high-profile surely shows a paradigm shift in party’s internal affairs. Current and past Presidents like Rajnath Singh and Nitin Gadkari were well groomed by mentors in their early days. (IPA Service)