BJP appoints new state in-charges for poll-bound UP, Punjab
What's the story
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has announced new state in-charges for Uttar Pradesh and Punjab ahead of the upcoming elections. The appointments were made by BJP national president Nitin Nabin. Vinod Tawde, a national general secretary and Rajya Sabha MP, has been appointed as the Uttar Pradesh in-charge. He will be assisted by national secretary Jagdish Ishwarbhai Patel as co-in-charge.
Twitter Post
Nabin appointed new state in-charges
BJP National President Nitin Nabin has appointed new state in-charges and co-in-charges for Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, and Gujarat.
— ANI (@ANI) August 18, 2026
Uttar Pradesh: Vinod Tawde appointed In-charge; Jagdish Ishwarbhai Patel appointed Co-In-charge
Punjab: Satish Poonia appointed In-charge.
Gujarat:… pic.twitter.com/9TnNDIhbCI
State leaders
Satish Poonia appointed as Punjab in-charge
In Punjab, where the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the Congress are the main contenders, Satish Poonia has been appointed as the sole in-charge.
The BJP is looking to strengthen its position in these states with these appointments.
Tarun Chugh has also been made in-charge of Gujarat, which is Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah's home state.
Team restructuring
Revamp of national team
The appointments come a day after the BJP revamped its national team under Nabin.
The party appointed 13 vice-presidents, eight general secretaries, and 16 secretaries.
Among the prominent leaders who retained their positions are former Rajasthan chief minister Vasundhara Raje as vice-president and Anil Baluni as media in-charge.
The new team also includes former Union minister Smriti Irani as general secretary and former RSS functionary Ram Madhav as vice president.