In the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJ), there are three categories of joinings — one where the spokesperson welcomes new faces; two, where the new recruit is welcomed by BJP’s general secretaries in Delhi or state presidents in respective state capitals; and finally, the third where either party chief JP Nadda or Home Minister Amit Shah welcomes the new joinee.
Of these, it is the third which is the most important and sought-after, with Captain Amarinder Singh of Punjab, Jyotiraditya Scindia of Madhya Pradesh, and Suvendu Adhikari of West Bengal falling in this category.
On Sunday, a 37-year-old advocate joined the elite list when Nadda welcomed him into the BJP fold. But who is Ankur Sharma to whom the BJP attaches such importance despite him not winning a single election ever?
WHO IS ANKUR SHARMA?
A software engineer and a law graduate, Sharma is the face of an organisation that many would describe as far-Right and espousing Hindu causes — Ekam Sanatan Bharat Dal. The organisation proposes to “amend the Constitution to define minority as a community comprising less than 5 per cent of the country’s population” and “declare Bharat as a ‘Natural Homeland’ for all Sanatanis, enabling full Citizenship rights for them”, much like Israel.
On Sunday, Nadda called Sharma a “nationalist” and praised what he termed “commendable work” which he thinks is in sync with the BJP’s philosophy. “We are confident that he will continue his commendable work for societal welfare and further strengthen the party,” he said.
Last year, the Ekam Sanatan Bharat Dal had demanded that Kashmir be divided into two Union Territories — one exclusively for “victims of the Hindu genocide of the 1990s” — and that Jammu be made a separate state. Sharma had also advocated for “one more reorganisation of Jammu and Kashmir”.
On behalf of his organisation, Sharma fought the 2024 Lok Sabha election but lost. While the 37-year-old and a candidate from his organisation may have lost in Jammu and Udhampur, his outfit created a niche in the Jammu region which is more inclined to their views compared to the BJP’s ‘Sab ka Saath, Sab ka Vikas’.
A RIGHT FIT AT THE RIGHT TIME?
Sharma’s induction just before the last two phases of the J&K elections is a well-calculated move that will help the BJP in the crucial third phase when districts like Baramulla, Udhampur, Jammu, Samba and Kathua will go to polls. To avoid a division of ‘nationalist’ votes, the BJP needed Sharma on its side. Now, 24 seats, spread across Jammu, Samba, and Kathua, may swing BJP’s way. The BJP won 18 of its 25 seats in the 2014 assembly election. If the party has to make an impressive mark, they have to win as many seats as possible among those on offer in the third phase.
But usurping Sharma’s hardline appeal would also mean owning his past legacy. He has been vocal against the alleged change of demography in Jammu and has not shied away from articulating his views on Gujjars and Bakerwals. Though largely Muslims, BJP has sided with the communities, citing them as the disadvantaged section of J&K under Article 370.
Sharma had also coined the term ‘Land Jihad’ in 2014, alluding to vast demographic changes in Jammu which is predominantly occupied by Hindus. He also went on to represent one of the accused in the Kathua rape case of a minor. Sharma’s outfit alleged back then that the Hindu accused were wrongly implicated. A year later, the software engineer’s hardline views earned him a spot on terror outfit Hizbul Mujahideen’s hitlist.
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