BJP’s Disciplinary Record in J&K: At Least 30 BJP Functionaries Expelled or Suspended Since 2011
Srinagar, Aug 12, KNT: The Jammu and Kashmir unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party has taken disciplinary action against a sizeable number of its leaders and functionaries over the past 15 years, with the record showing expulsions and suspensions for cross-voting, contesting elections against official party candidates, alleged anti-party activities, internal indiscipline, controversial public statements and, most recently, participation in an unauthorized rally and a police case alleging extortion.
A review of publicly documented cases shows that at least 30 people have faced expulsion or suspension in major disciplinary episodes since 2011. The figure is not an official lifetime register of every disciplinary action taken by the BJP in J&K, but reflects cases that could be independently traced through contemporary reports and party statements.
The most dramatic early episode came in 2011, when seven BJP legislators defied the party whip during Legislative Council elections and voted for National Conference-Congress alliance candidates instead of the BJP nominee.
Former Union minister and BJP leader Chaman Lal Gupta was expelled in May 2011, while six other legislators, Durga Dass, Master Lal Chand, Jagdish Raj Sapolia, Baldev Sharma, Bharat Bhushan and Gharu Ram Bhagat, were initially suspended and subsequently expelled in November.
The six later had their suspension/expulsion-related action revoked and were brought back into the party fold, illustrating that disciplinary action in the BJP has not always meant permanent separation.
In 2018, former BJP MLA Gagan Bhagat was expelled amid allegations of continued indiscipline and anti-party activities. The BJP said he had failed to follow the directions of its disciplinary committee and had acted against party interests.
The next major wave came during the 2020 District Development Council elections, when the party moved aggressively against rebels contesting against official BJP candidates.
In November 2020, BJP expelled rebel DDC candidate Balbir Lal and his supporters Shakti Sharma and Harjeet Singh after Lal contested against the party’s official candidate from Marh despite instructions to withdraw. Around the same period, senior leader Arun Sharma was also expelled after refusing to withdraw his candidature from Purmandal against the official BJP candidate.
In December 2020, another eight BJP leaders and functionaries were expelled for contesting against official party candidates or supporting rebels in the DDC polls. Those named in the party action included Santosh Kumari, Satish Sharma, Makkhan Lal Jamoria, Neena Rakwal, Garmail Singh, Lokesh Sumbria, Tirath Singh and Ranbir Singh. The BJP said they had ignored instructions to withdraw and that their conduct amounted to indiscipline and anti-party activity.
The party’s disciplinary machinery was again activated in 2023 when notices were issued to eight Kashmir-based leaders, Ghulam Mohammad Mir, Dr Ali Mohammad Mir, Altaf Thakur, Asif Masoodi, Arif Raja, Anwar Khan, Manzoor Bhat and Bilal Parray, over alleged indiscipline. These cases did not initially result in expulsion; the leaders subsequently apologized and the proceedings were closed.
However, the disciplinary process resurfaced in 2024 when Manzoor Bhat and Asif Masoodi were expelled from the party’s primary membership. Party sources cited disobedience of directions and organizing parallel functions as the grounds for action.
The 2024 Assembly elections as per the data available wit the news agency Kashmir News Trust produced another substantial round of disciplinary action as BJP leaders rebelled over ticket distribution.
Ramban district vice-president Suraj Singh Parihar was expelled after resigning from the BJP and entering the Assembly contest as an independent against the party’s candidate. The BJP described the move as anti-party activity.
Read: BJP Removes Nine Anantnag Leaders Over Unauthorized Tiranga Rally
Shiv Dev Singh was also expelled after filing his nomination as an independent candidate against the BJP’s official candidate in Jammu North. The party said his action amounted to anti-party activity.
At the same time, three prominent BJP leaders, then J&K vice-president Pawan Khajuria, Balwan Singh and Narinder Singh Bhau, were suspended after entering the Assembly contest against BJP candidates. Khajuria and Bhau contested as independents, while Balwan Singh contested on a National Panthers Party ticket. The BJP termed their conduct an act of indiscipline and anti-party activity.
Another three leaders, Amit Sharma, Prakshit Singh and Swarn Singh Rathore, were suspended later in September 2024 over alleged anti-party activities during the Assembly elections after they had already been served show-cause notices.
In a different kind of disciplinary case, senior Poonch BJP leader Satish Bhargav was expelled for six years in 2024 after a video of his remarks at an election meeting in Mendhar led to allegations of hate speech and use of unparliamentary language. The BJP’s disciplinary committee said his conduct constituted gross indiscipline.
The disciplinary record has now entered another phase in August 2026, with the BJP taking action against party functionaries in south Kashmir.
Nine BJP functionaries were suspended following an unauthorized rally in Anantnag. The party distanced itself from the slogans raised during the event and said the rally had not been authorized by the J&K BJP leadership. The action came amid controversy over slogans and conduct during the rally.
The latest and more immediate action came on Aug 11, when the BJP suspended its Pulwama district president, Er Syed Showkat Gayoor Andrabi, from all organizational posts and responsibilities after police registered an FIR against him in a case alleging extortion.
The police case alleges, among other things, that Gayoor demanded Rs 5 lakh from a complainant, obstructed vehicles at a worksite and threatened the complainant with action under the Public Safety Act. The FIR also contains an allegation that Rs 54,000 was paid in two instalments. These are allegations contained in the police case and have not been established by a court.
The BJP’s decision to suspend Gayoor came after the police case and was taken on the recommendation of its disciplinary committee. The suspension removes him from the Pulwama district president’s position while disciplinary proceedings are pending.
Taken together, the documented record shows several recurring grounds for BJP disciplinary action in J&K.
The earliest major purge centred on cross-voting and violation of the party whip. The 2020 and 2024 actions were dominated by electoral rebellions, particularly leaders contesting as independents or supporting candidates other than those officially fielded by the BJP.
Other cases involved alleged internal indiscipline and parallel political activity, while Satish Bhargav’s case involved remarks the party considered unacceptable. The latest August actions have added two different circumstances to the record, participation in an unauthorized rally and disciplinary action following a police case alleging extortion.
The numbers also require an important qualification. Suspension and expulsion are not interchangeable. Some suspended leaders have later been reinstated, while some expelled leaders have subsequently been considered for re-induction. A March 2026 report, for instance, said the BJP had begun reaching out to some leaders expelled during the 2024 Assembly elections ahead of forthcoming Panchayat and Urban Local Body polls.
Thus, the available record does not establish a single permanent headcount of people who have left the BJP as a result of disciplinary action. What it does establish is a long-running pattern in which the J&K unit has repeatedly used suspension, show-cause notices and expulsion to enforce party discipline, particularly during elections. [KNT]
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