Several leaders of the BJP’s Bengal unit on Wednesday heaved a sigh of relief after the party’s central leadership replaced Kailash Vijayvargiya, the former minder for the state, with Sunil Bansal.

Bansal was the party’s organisational general secretary in Uttar Pradesh. He has been elevated as the party’s national general secretary and given the charge of important states such as Bengal, Odisha and Telangana.

“It’s a relief that finally Kailashji has been replaced... Most state leaders wanted his formal removal though he was hardly seen in the state after the Assembly poll debacle,” said a senior state BJP leader.

Many in the state BJP think that Vijyavargiya’s “faulty planning” in terms of candidate selection and campaign strategy cost the party dear in the 2021 Assembly polls.

State BJP leaders had criticised Vijyavargiya’s dependence on Mukul Roy, who had joined the BJP in 2017 and returned to Trinamul after the Assembly polls.

“He never listened to the state leaders as he was completely under the influence of Mukulda, who finally returned to Trinamul after queering our pitch,” said a source.

The state BJP leaders think that the party can chart a different course for itself under Bansal’s leadership.

“Bansal is one of the key strategists for the party and his appointment will help boost the beleaguered organization in Bengal. It is important as the party wants to reverse its performance in the Lok Sabha polls,” said a BJP source.

Bansal is expected to look after the three non-BJP states simultaneously till the Lok Sabha polls in 2024.