25 thousand followers on social media - BJP's eligibility criteria for ticket in UP polls

Meerut: Well, this one may leave many BJP leaders in the state of Uttar Pradesh stumped.

After party chief Amit Shah reportedly told BJP leaders hopeful of getting tickets that their social media presence will be one of the important factors which will determine their suitability for the 2017 Assembly polls in UP, many state members with limited or nil presence on Facebook and Twitter are  in a flux.

Shah is also supposed to have encouraged those vying for tickets to have 25,000 followers or likes each.

As per a report in the Times of India, BJP's state president Laxmikant Bajpai has just 10,000 followers on Twitter.

On the other hand, Muzaffarnagar riots accused Shamli MLA Suresh Rana has 12,856 followers on Facebook.

And BJP MP from Meerut Rajendra Agarwal has 13,957 likes.

Kunwar Bhartendra Singh, BJP's Bijnor MP, does not have a fan page on his Facebook account and has just 2,986 friends.

He is not active on Twitter.

"The real parameter of a leader's popularity is gauged by the work he does in his area and not how many followers he has on social media. Besides, a leader serves all sections of society, and not all of them are on social media platforms," a member was quoted as saying by the Daily.

But party's outgoing state president Laxmikant Bajpai seemed hopeful.

As per the report, he seemed confident of achieving the "target in just three months".

Meanwhile, Shamli MLA Suresh Rana was quoted as saying, "I think the statement should not be taken as a burden. Instead, social media is the best way to connect with the youth and it also serves as a barometer of your work. A few days ago, I got a suggestion on FB itself when someone asked me to put up a question in Vidhan Sabha on the way Western UP's increasingly contaminated groundwater is giving rise to diseases like cancer. I do not have a fan page. The day I have that page, I will also have a minimum of 1 lakh likes."

Bijnor MP Kunwar Bharatendra opined that Shah's suggestion has been misunderstood.

"Shah's statement was more on a suggestive note because 25,000 followers are minimal to run an election campaign. The message was intended to encourage party workers to strive harder towards increasing public contact," he said.