Around 11,500 delegates to attend BJP national council meet in Delhi this weekend

The BJP on Thursday said that around 11,500 delegates from across the country will attend the party's two-day national council meet at the Bharat Mandapam here starting February 17.

Addressing a press conference at the party headquarters, senior BJP leader and former Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said the delegates will include office-bears of the party across the country, all central ministers, sitting and former MPs, MLAs, elected mayors and deputy mayors.

It will have a ''comprehensive organisational agenda'', he said.

''The Congress and the Communists make various kinds of comments but the BJP is the only party which does maximum organisational work in a democratic manner, be it holding in time the party's national convention, national executive and other programmes in states and districts,'' Prasad told reporters.

''This is in our DNA,'' he added.

Prasad said BJP national president J P Nadda will deliver the inaugural speech at the national council meet on February 17 and the meet will conclude with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's address the next day.

He noted that the council meetings were held right before the elections in 2014 and 2019 as well, with the BJP winning its maiden majority in the Lok Sabha in 2014 and notching up a bigger win five years later.

Modi, who had spoken in the previous two council meetings as well, has now set a target of winning 370 Lok Sabha seats for the party and over 400 seats out of 543 for the ruling alliance, he said, adding that the party will now work to achieve the targets.

''This time the prime minister has set a target of 370 seats for the BJP and 400 plus seats for the NDA. The 'rashtriya adhiveshan' has been organised to bring the prime minister's call to fruition,” Prasad said.

During the two-day national council meet, the BJP leader said, there will be discussions on various topics including the upcoming Lok Sabha polls and the party's preparations for it.

''A comprehensive organisational agenda is there for the meeting,'' he said, adding “On February 17, there will be a meeting of the party office-bearers and at 3 pm there will be flag hoisting.'' “There will be detailed discussion on upcoming elections,” Prasad said An exhibition on the “concept of Viksit Bharat (developed India)” will be put up at the meeting venue for the delegates, he added.

''Generally, we hold a big national convention ahead of the Lok Sabha elections. In our national convention, our Prime Minister Narendra Modi's speech has been very inspiring. His speeches and comments become a 'nazeer' (example) for the party workers across the country. All of us will wait for his speech this time,” Prasad said The two-day meet of the party is going to be “very effective”, he added.