Himanta higher in importance than Shah: Ram Madhav

NEDA Convenor Himanta Biswa Sarma is higher in importance than party Chief Amit Shah for the BJP in terms of Northeast affairs, said General Secretary Ram Madhav on Sunday.

Madhav made this statement while replying to a query about why Sarma cannot contest elections being responsible for 25 seats whereas Shah with the responsibility of the entire country can and will contest from Gandhinagar..

Speaking to the media in Guwahati, Madhav said, "That means Himanta Biswa Sarma's burden is much more than Amit Shah's, probably. Because he has to handle 5-6 governments here. He has to handle the entire election campaign in the Northeast.

"That needs a lot of energy and time, so the party cannot confine him to one seat. We needed his time and energy for the larger campaign for all candidates in the Northeast," he added.

Earlier, Shah had made it clear that Sarma will not be offered a ticket to contest the Lok Sabha elections. Later, the Assam Minister took to Twitter to say that he accepted the decision "humbly" and the region will not disappoint Shah in making Narendra Modi Prime Minister again.

On earlier occasions, Sarma himself had said that he will not contest the Assembly elections in the state in 2021, hinting his desire for a national role.