New Delhi: As the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) celebrates its 36th foundation day today, Prime Minister Narendra Modi extended his wishes to all the party workers and said that the nations had reposed their faith in the party, seeing it as means to fulfil their dreams.
Asserting that the BJP is proud of its 'industrious' Chief Minister's serving in many states, he added that wherever the BJP has formed Governments, they served people in an exemplary manner.
The party’s state units will be organising functions to mark the occasion. In New Delhi, party’s national president Amit Shah will address a gathering to celebrate the day. In Gujarat, the party would be celebrating this day by taking out 'Bharat Mata Gaurav Kooch', a march, at 18 places across the state.
The BJP was founded on April 3, 1980, after the Janata Party asked the erstwhile Jan Sanghis in its ranks, including Atal Bihari Vajpayee and LK Advani, to quit on the ‘dual membership’ issue. The Janata Party, then led by Chandrashekhar, wanted them to renounce their membership of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh to remain in the Janata Party.
Three days later on April 6, Vajpayee, Advani, MM Joshi, Vijay Kumar Malhotra and others formed the BJP. Vajpayee became the first president while Advani was made the first general secretary.
The party contested on its own in 1984 and won two seats in the Lok Sabha. It later formed three governments headed by Vajpayee. After nearly a decade in the opposition, Modi led the party to a stunning victory in the 2014 general elections.
