Nitin Nabin takes charge as BJP chief

New Delhi, Jan 20:  Nitin Nabin, the youngest ever, on Tuesday took charge as the national president of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) at the party headquarters in the national capital.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh were among the senior leaders present on the occasion.

He is a five-term MLA and emerged as the sole candidate in the race, making him the youngest leader to hold the top position in the party’s history.

PM Modi felicitated Nitin Nabin after handing him the certificate of election as BJP national president at the party headquarters in Delhi. Outgoing BJP national president JP Nadda, along with Rajnath Singh, Amit Shah, and Nitin Gadkari, also congratulated the newly elected president.

Addressing party leaders and workers, Nadda congratulated the new president and said that Nitin Nabin, have taken on the responsibility as the 12th National President of such a great party.

Reflecting on recent electoral performances, he added, “The results of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections did not meet our expectations. These results surprised not only the party but also the general public. A sense of disappointment arose among the country’s voters, and a feeling of resentment developed. The voters resolved that in upcoming elections, they would give their full support to Modi ji and work to further the party’s progress.”

Nadda recalled that after the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, the opposition was very confident in the Haryana elections.

“They were already making arrangements to distribute sweets even before the results were declared. They didn’t realize that voters had decided to correct the minor mistakes caused by overconfidence. That’s exactly what happened in Haryana. We saw a record victory in Maharashtra under the leadership of respected Modi ji.and under your leadership, after 27 years, the lotus bloomed in Delhi as well, forming the BJP government.”

Deputy Commissioner K. Laxman, who acted as the Returning Officer for the election, announced that 37 sets of nomination papers backing Nabin, including endorsements from Prime Minister Modi, union Ministers Amit Shah, Rajnath Singh, Nitin Gadkari, Dharmendra Pradhan, Kiren Rijiju, Hardeep Puri, and outgoing president JP Nadda, were found valid. Chief Ministers and state BJP presidents from several states, including Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Goa, Arunachal Pradesh, and Delhi, also submitted nominations in his favor.

The election followed an extensive internal process that began at the grassroots and moved to the national level. The national president poll was held after 30 of the 36 state BJP units elected their presidents, fulfilling the requirement for the party’s electoral college. Nitin Nabin was appointed national working president on December 14, 2025, signaling the high command’s choice for the top position.

Nabin’s elevation is seen as a generational shift, with the party emphasizing organizational strength ahead of key state elections this year and next, including in Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Assam, and Uttar Pradesh, as well as the 2029 general elections. Party sources noted that his appointment contrasts with the Congress, still led by 84-year-old Mallikarjun Kharge.

Hailing from Bihar, Nitin comes from a political family; his father, Nabin Kishore Prasad Sinha, was a multi-term BJP MLA. Nitin Nabin entered politics in 2006, contesting a bypoll following his father’s passing, and has remained unbeaten since, first representing Patna West and later Bankipur. He has held ministerial positions in Bihar, including Roads Minister (2021–22) and Minister for Urban Development, Housing, and Law and Justice (2024–25). Previously, he held key positions in the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha at both state and national levels and was credited with strengthening the party’s presence in states like Chhattisgarh and Sikkim.