Ex-MP Ranjan Bhatt

Former MP Ranjanben Bhatt inducted the entire security staff at a garba event in Vadodara’s New Sama area into the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on October 3, highlighting the party’s recent aggressive stance on recruitment.

Bhatt announced the induction of the staff at the Ayyappa Maidan garba on social media, framing it as part of the "#Sadsyata_Abhiyan_2024" (Membership Campaign 2024) on the first day of Shardiya Navratri.

This mass induction is part of the BJP’s nationwide membership campaign launched on September 2, following Prime Minister Narendra Modi's call to expand the party's base among women, youth, and traditionally weak areas.

The party’s recruitment strategy has been making waves with BJP leaders recruiting people from various public gatherings and events. They have also been seen asking for OTP on mobile phones to register new members, a shift from traditional face-to-face ideology-based recruitment.

Bhatt has previously inducted all the staff of a Nizampura-based beauty salon into the party and has actively pursued artisans from the diamond industry to sign up. She also claims to have introduced several women near New Sama’s Bal Gopal Garba ground, in Valsad’s Chhiri village and at Swayambhu Bhavnath Mahadev Temple in Junagadh to the BJP ideology.

The vigorous membership drive reflects the BJP's push to bolster its support base, but the effectiveness and long-term impact of these recruitment methods remain to be seen.