(MENAFN- Khaleej Times) Anurag Thakur Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) member of parliament from Hamirpur in Himachal Pradesh state is a man who is at ease with politics or sport.He represents the new guard in a party whose government under PM Narendra Modi has promised something for everyone in a country of 1.2 billion. Anurag Thakur Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) member of parliament from Hamirpur in Himachal Pradesh state is a man who is at ease with politics or sport. He’s the president of the youth wing of his party a Board of Control for Cricket in India joint secretary and chief of the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association. He also chairs the sports ministry’s ‘Target Mission Olympic Podium’ scheme. He may have missed a berth in the
Modi cabinet but remains true to the BJP’s core ideology and will ‘serve the last man in the queue’. Excerpts from an interview to Allan Jacob Q: How different will the government be in its approach to policies and principles of public administration
A: There is a fresh outlook towards planning policies and projects. Unlike before people can directly connect with the prime minister and his council of ministers give suggestions and share ideas on various policy initiatives.
What do you expect the government to do for a young India Will there be an emphasis on job creation for the hundreds of thousands of young people passing out of universities every year
Mr Modi inspired and received the support of millions of youth across the country during the election campaign; he understands their problems and aspirations very well. Skill development and employment are amongst his top priorities; the first union budget of our government clearly outlines steps in this direction. The setting up of five new Indian Institutes of Technology and Indian Institutes of Management each has been announced simplification of educational loan for higher studies transformation of employment exchanges into career centers district level incubation and accelerator programme to encourage entrepreneurship as well as a young leaders programme are steps aimed at helping to realise the dreams of young Indians.
You may be a young Turk in the party but your views on women do not seem to reflect this. You even called Sonia Gandhi a witch earlier this year. Are you and other young leaders in the BJP uncomfortable with women being in command
The truth is that those comments were made by someone impersonating me on social media against who I made a police complaint and got the page blocked. Our value system does not allow such behaviour. I have immense respect for Mrs Gandhi and have been at the forefront in raising as well as supporting women issues both within and outside parliament. My initiative the ‘Honour Our Women Foundation’ is another step in that direction which aims to empower and raise awareness about women’s issues. I must also add that the BJP has given key responsibilities to its women MPs. I share an excellent working relationship with all of them.
What does your role as a young MP and chief of its youth wing entail Do you lobby for a role for youth in your party What is your plan of action
This is my third term as the BJYM (BJP youth wing) national president and over the years we have galvanised support from millions of youth across India. We have protested against the unjust anti-people policies of the previous government. We have raised our voice against the previous government through online and on-road activities. We organised protests marches and rallies in almost all the districts of India and provided the youth a political platform to speak up. During my tenure as BJYM president a large number of youth joined BJP both online and offline. As a young MP I have also raised the issues of young India in parliament on various occasions. Our work has brought about greater political and social awareness amongst the youth through constructive politics. With the BJP in power at the centre we intend to focus on education employment and empowerment of the youth across India.
How do the youth in the BJP feel after Modi’s victory Do they harp on ideology like the old guard or are they pushing for a more inclusive form of democracy away from the likes of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and Bajrang Dal
The youth in India are elated at Mr Modi’s victory. The new government is focusing on ideas without compromising on ideological issues. The BJP remains true to its core ideology and principles that have given it a resounding success in the recent polls.
The BJP targets the Congress for being dynastic but you’re from a political family yourself (his father is Prem Kumar Dhumal a former Himachal chief minister). How do you justify that
There is nothing wrong in belonging to a political family so long as you deliver on the promises you make to the electorate. The BJP is very democratic in its structure; it is neither run on the whims of one particular family nor hostage to its ineffective leadership. Ours is a party that abides by the principle of ‘antyodaya’ which translates to ‘serving the last man in the queue’. Mr Narendra Modi is a living example of this; he started out a tea seller at a railway station in Gujarat became a grassroots worker of the party and worked his way up in the BJP eventually becoming prime minister.
I’m trying to read your mind here: What drives you as a young politician or what makes you tick as a politician Public service power or patronage You seem to have it all.
As a politician one can channelise the potential of India’s youth and help to realise their aspirations towards building a progressive India.
What next for you Minister for youth and sports in a future Modi cabinet
I have always welcomed every role and responsibility the party has given me. I am a grassroots karyakarta (activist) of BJP first and like millions others I will continue to deliver on the tasks given to me by my party.
How would you bracket yourself Conservative nationalist secular or liberal
I think my party motto best resonates my views: ‘nation first party second self last’.
I’m curious to know to know how many Muslims and Christians and other groups are members of the youth wing How welcoming are you to other religious groups
A large number of people from various religious communities joined the BJP in the run up to the elections. The BJP organisational structure has dedicated wings for minorities farmers women scheduled tribes and scheduled castes. We have always welcomed anyone who wants to serve the people of India and provided them our platform. In fact during the current year thousands of youth from different religious communities joined BJYM.
Do you think the youth have been adequately represented in the Lok Sabha
There are nearly 315 first time MP’s of which 71 new MPs are under the age of 40 and another 216 are under the age of 55. In fact the average age of BJP MPs is three years younger to their Congress counterparts and nearly half of the women in parliament are from the BJP alone.
Besides being president of the Himachal cricket board you are also BCCI joint secretary. You also hold a host of other sports body positions. What’s a politician like you doing in sports Wearing many hats How effective can you be
At the age of 12 I decided to pursue cricket as a career played in Ranji matches and captained the Punjab U-19 cricket team that won the All India Championship. My cricketing experience aside I took on the role of a sports administrator at the age of 25 with great responsibilities came greater challenges and therein lay immense opportunities. My love for sports took shape in the creation of the picturesque international level Cricket Stadium at Dharamshala. It played host to four successful seasons of the Indian Premier League matches between UK and Indian MPs and Bollywood stars and Indian parliamentarians. Two sports academies are also in the pipeline in association with Yuvraj Singh and Harbhajan Singh. With the Olympics round the corner I am chairing the sports ministry’s “Target Mission Olympic Podium scheme to identify evaluate and select around 75 to 100 potential medal winners for India.
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