BJP steps up preparation ahead of polls in several states

BJP president Amit Shah on Wednesday appointed Union Ministers J P Nadda, Prakash Javadekar and Dharmendra Pradhan as the party's election in-charges for Telangana, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh respectively, a party statement said.

The Assembly elections are likely to be held in these three states, besides Chhattisgarh, in the next couple of months.

Shah has also appointed Mukul Roy, who had quit the Trinamool Congress to join the BJP and seen as a capable organisational leader, as convener of the party's election management committee in West Bengal.

In another appointment, the BJP made Arvind Menon, who has an RSS background and was once a powerful organisational leader in Madhya Pradesh, as the party's co-in-charge for West Bengal.

Party General Secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya is the in-charge for the state.

The appointments in West Bengal underlines Shah's focus on the state, which he sees as a potential region for the party's growth in the next Lok Sabha election.