Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Rajiv Pratap Rudy continued to maintain his dominance in the Constitution Club management, as he defeated fellow party leader Sanjeev Balyan in an election that saw participation from Union Home Minister Amit Shah, and veteran Congress leaders Mallikarjun Kharge and Sonia Gandhi.
Following his victory well past midnight, Ruddy said he had won by more than 100 votes. "It's a beautiful victory for all the parliamentarians and all those who came to vote and endorse the relentless effort of the team for last two decades... It's a beautiful experience," he said.
BJP vs BJP contest
Incumbent Secretary (Administration) Rudy, a five-time Lok Sabha MP, faced a contest from Balyan, a former Union Minister and a two-time legislator, but won with a comfortable margin in a contest that was dubbed as BJP vs BJP.
Over 680 valid votes were cast out of the total electors of 1,295 current and former MPs, officials said, making it one of the highest turnouts for the election to the club's office-bearers.
Who voted in the contest?
Prominent leaders, including Amit Shah, JP Nadda, Piyush Goyal, Kiren Rijiju, Mallikarjun Kharge, Sonia Gandhi voted on Tuesday. Besides, governors like Shiv Pratap Shukla of Himachal Pradesh also voted in the contest.
Rudy has been a dominant presence, winning several elections uncontested, before Balyan, spurred by the support from some BJP leaders with Lok Sabha MP Nishikant Dubey being the most visible campaigner, decided to test the Bihar leader's strength.
It is believed that members affiliated to opposition party largely backed Rudy, those of the BJP were split, with many favouring Balyan. The elections included 14 members vying for the position of 11 executive members.
Both former Union ministers, Rudy and Balyan, may be from the same party but presented two contrasting personalities drawn from different social milieus.
Rudy, a commercial pilot, is a suave and polished leader who is at home with social elites, mixing his urbane personality effortlessly with his background as a savvy parliamentarian who has got the better of the likes of Rabri Devi and her daughter Rohini Acharya in Lok Sabha elections from Saran.
Balyan, who is from western Uttar Pradesh, was a representative of rural sensibilities and grassroots ruggedness. Warm and upfront, he had his share of close friends in the BJP and outside.
That Rudy is a Thakur and his rival a Jat has given the contest an expected caste angle, but personal ties and behind-the-scenes manoeuvring played a big role in the final outcome. Rudy was on a familiar turf and his long ties with the members turned out to be decisive.
While Rudy had listed the addition of numerous facilities to the club and its modernisation under his tenure to seek another term, Balyan was rooting for a change, claiming that the club should focus on catering to MPs and former MPs and not "outsiders" like IAS and IPS officers.
The Lok Sabha Speaker is the ex-officio president of the club. But the Secretary plays a crucial role in the executive functioning of the facility.
(With PTI inputs)
