Nabin as BJP National President Marks Generational Shift in Saffron Party

The election of Bihar Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Nitin Nabin as party chief on Tuesday marks a generation shift as the 45-year-old will be the youngest to assume the responsibility. Prior to him, home minister Amit Shah had become party president in 2014 after the formation of Modi 1.0 at the age 49.

The change in guard brings the curtain down on Jagat Prakash Nadda’s extended six-year tenure as party president after he took charge in January, 2020. Like Nadda, the new incumbent was also president of the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM), and has been organizational in-charge of states like Chhattisgarh and Sikkim.

He was first elected as MLA from Patna West in 2006 and subsequently from Bankipur in 2010, 2015, 2020 and 2025. He has been minister for road construction, urban development and housing and law in Bihar government.

Welcoming Nabin’s election, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that the leader would from this day onwards be party president of all workers and leaders. “Nitin Nabin's responsibility is not just to manage the BJP alone, he also has a significant role in ensuring coordination among all NDA allies. Everyone who has interacted with him speaks highly of his simplicity and natural ease,” Modi said.

“Nitin has always proven himself wherever responsibility was entrusted to him. His dedication has filled those who gave him responsibilities with pride. This is the 21st century, and already the first 25 years of this century have passed. The next 25 years will be crucial. This is the period in which a developed India is to be built, and it will be done,” said Modi.

The new party president signals an effort to nurture a new leadership and skips an intervening group of leaders in their 50s and 60s though they will continue to serve as ministers and organisational functionaries. The younger face who does not have exposure to national politics represents a conscious bid to promote mobility in the ranks and prevent hierarchies from becoming entrenched.

The Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS) has also from time to time reminded BJP leaders of the need to look beyond immediate elections and concentrate on building the organisational ethos and ensuring party mechanisms operate smoothly while providing a constant flow of feedback from grassroots.

Taking BJP’s achievements to the people and maximising awareness of government programmes that benefit socio-economically weaker sections is a key task. Modi has on more than one occasion called for the saturation of central welfare schemes and full implementation of public health programmes.

Nabin’s formal election as BJP chief will be followed by a round of discussions with state party leaders expected to be held at the party office in New Delhi on Wednesday.