Former Union minister J.P. Nadda appears to be ahead in the race for the post of BJP president now that Amit Shah has joined the Narendra Modi government, sources said on Thursday.

The BJP follows a one-man-one-post convention, which means Shah is likely to step aside as party president.

Although there was no official word from the party, the fact that Nadda, who was health minister in the previous Modi government, was not among those sworn in on Thursday was seen as an indication of him replacing Shah as BJP president.

Nadda, 59, hails from Himachal Pradesh and is known to be extremely close to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, the BJP’s ideological parent.

He had been a strong contender for the BJP chief’s post even in 2014, but Modi was believed to have prevailed over the RSS to get his most trusted lieutenant from Gujarat, Shah, appointed as the party in-charge.

Mukesh Ambani at the swearing-in. Picture by Prem Singh

A section of BJP leaders are also naming party general secretary and Rajya Sabha MP Bhupendra Yadav as a possible replacement of Shah. These leaders said Yadav was close to Shah and was his choice for the post but the RSS wanted Nadda.

“Naddaji is an old organisation man and one of the blue-eyed boys of the RSS. But Bhupendra Yadav is Amitbhai’s most trusted general secretary. If Amitbhai has his way, Bhupendraji could be the next party chief,” a BJP leader said.

There were also whispers in BJP corridors about Shah, in an “extraordinary” move, continuing to hold two posts — that of cabinet minister and party president. The BJP constitution doesn’t bar a leader from holding two posts at the same time.

“Amitbhai has extraordinary capacity,” a BJP leader quipped, not ruling out the possibility of Shah continuing as party chief.

Many in the BJP had thought that Yadav could become a minister in the Modi 2.0 cabinet, but he was not among those who took oath on Thursday. This led the BJP leaders to speculate that he could now take over as BJP chief.

Mukesh Ambani's wife and son at the swearing-in. Picture by Prem Singh

Yadav had been closeted with Shah and general secretary (organisation) Ramlal in the morning, fanning the speculation.

But given the larger-than-life aura of Shah, particularly after the BJP’s striking haul of 303 seats in the Lok Sabha polls, it is widely expected that he would continue to call the shots irrespective of whoever succeeds him as party president.

Both Nadda and Yadav are seen as leaders who would fit into the role of Shah’s “yes man”.

Nadda — currently the secretary of the BJP parliamentary board, the highest decision-making body of the party — has always been a low-profile leader.

Yadav has in the last five years been Shah’s “most trusted” lieutenant, handling critical state elections and many other organisational responsibilities.

Pawar stays away

NCP president Sharad Pawar did not attend Narendra Modi’s swearing-in ceremony because he was not allotted a seat “as per protocol”, PTI quoted his party as saying.

Spokesperson Nawab Malik said Pawar, a senior national leader who has served as Union minister and chief minister, was allotted a seat in the fifth row. “His office learnt he was not allotted a seat for the event as per protocol. Hence, he didn’t attend the event. Whether they did it deliberately or it happened by mistake, it wasn’t right given he is a senior leader,” Malik told PTI.