Mumbai
Updated : Nov 17, 2014, 02:51 PM IST
With Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel's birth anniversary coinciding with the new state government's swearing-in ceremony, BJP leaders at the district level are facing a unique problem. Not only do they have to organise for their loyalists to take part in the Unity Run, they also have to keep a separate team of party workers to attend the ceremony.
The Union government has come out with an order calling for a celebration to mark the birth anniversary of India's first home minister as Rashtriya Ekta Diwas (Day of National Unity).
The district administration heads have already held separate meetings to organise the Unity Run in various districts of Maharashtra. BJP leaders, especially the organising secretaries of the party organization at the district level, are working towards making the run a big success.
One of the district unit leaders said, "When the birth anniversary celebration message came a fortnight ago, we were sure we would do it as successfully as we did the safai abhiyaan. But now, with the swearing-in of Devendraji Fadnavis and a few cabinet colleagues falling on the same day, we are finding it difficult."
He said most party workers and those who were actively involved in election-related work want to attend the swearing-in ceremony at Wankhede stadium.
Party spokesperson Madhav Bhandari said for the swearing-in ceremony there are more than 4,500 special invitees who are VIPs and are from various walks of life. The state unit of the party has assigned responsibility of ensuring invitees from 20 different walks of life to party leaders, including Union minister Prakash Javadekar, Piyush Goyal, Ashish Shelar, and Kirit Somaiya among others. There is a separate category of acharya, saints and mahants, who are invited in addition to invitees from Bollywood, corporate sector, Marathi film industry, doctors, Arjuna award winners, social workers, cultural personalities, and litterateurs among others.