Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha

Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha
President	Anurag Singh Thakur
Founded	1978
Headquarters	New Delhi
Ideology	Conservatism
Mother party	Bharatiya Janata Party
Website
http://bjym.org

The Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM) (translation: Indian People Youth Front) is the youth wing of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). It was founded in 1978, and its first national president was Kalraj Mishra.

Organisation

The highest authority in the BJYM is the National President.The National Executive consists of an undetermined number of senior party leaders from across the nation who are the highest decision-making body in the party. At the state level, a similar structure is in place, with every state unit being led by a president.^[1]

The Bharatiya Janata Party is a cadre based party, with the members of its affiliates, such as the BJYM, frequently supplementing that of the main party.^[1] Many prominent leaders of the BJP, such as Rajnath Singh, Pramod Mahajan, and Shivraj Singh Chauhan, were once National Presidents of BJYM.

BJYM maintains close relation with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and other organisations in the RSS family, such as the Vishwa Hindu Parishad and the Swadeshi Jagaran Manch.

Campaigns

Protests against Habib Tanvir

In 2003, members of the BJYM joined BJP members in protesting against two plays written by the playwright Habib Tanvir, on the grounds that they were an attack on Hindu culture. The plays were a critique of the caste system, superstition, and untouchability.^[2]

Map of India on Wikipedia

Amit Satam, the youth president of the organisation in Mumbai and a small group protested outside of the Fort campus of Mumbai University during a conference related to Wikipedia.

Protests against Rang de Basanti

In 2006, the BJYM successfully campaigned for a ban against the Aamir Khan film Rang de Basanti. The campaign was begun in reaction to Khan's public statement opposing the expansion of the Sardar Sarovar Dam.^[3]

Bringing back Indian Black Money in Swiss banks

During the 15th Lok Sabha elections in 2009, the BJYM supported the BJP's campaign to bring back Indian black money stored in Swiss banks.^[4]

Inflation

The BJYM has protested several times against price rise and high inflation, particularly in reaction to the high rate of inflation in India since 2000.^[5]

Unemployment

In 2007, the BJYM demanded a special youth policy, as well as the prioritization of local businesses over multinational corporations, in order to address the rate of unemployment.^[6]

Health Care reforms

In 2008, the Youth morcha staged a campaign demanding the improvement of government health facilities. Specific issues it raised included filling vacancies, especially those of gynaecologists, orthopaedics and surgeons; improving the cleanliness of the hospital; and the provision of 24-hour medical services.^[7]

Protection of Indian students in Australia

On 1 June 2009 Youth Morcha held a protest against the recent attacks on Indian students studying in Australia and demanding increased security for them. A six-member BJYM delegation also met the Australian High Commissioner, John McCarthy, and Deputy High Commissioner Sarah Hooper to express its dismay over the attacks.^[8][9]

Terrorism

In 2008, the Youth Mocha campaigned against unemployment and terrorism in Kerala, stating that the Communist Party of India (Marxist) state government was soft on terrorism.^[10]

List of previous presidents

Year	Name	Place
1978–1980	Kalraj Mishra	Ghazipur, Uttar Pradesh
1980–1986	Satya Dev Singh	Shrawasti, Uttar Pradesh
1986–1988	Pramod Mahajan	Mumbai, Maharashtra
1988–1990	Rajnath Singh	Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh
1990–1994	Jagat Prakash Nadda
2000–2002	Shivraj Singh Chauhan	Vidisha, Madhya Pradesh
2002–2005	G. Kishan Reddy
2005–2007	Dharmendra Pradhan	Angul, Odisha
2007–2010	Amit Thaker	Ahmedabad, Gujarat
2010–2014	Anurag Thakur	Hamirpur
2014—	Anurag Thakur	Hamirpur

References

1. Swain, Pratap Chandra (2001). Bharatiya Janata Party: Profile and Performance. India: APH publishing. pp. 71–104. ISBN 978-81-7648-257-8.
2. Deshpande, Sudhanva (Aug 30 – Sep 5, 2003). "Habib Tanvir under attack". Economic & Political Weekly. 38 (35): 3620–3621. JSTOR 4413951.
3. Sarkar, Subhradipta (2009). "Right to Free Speech in a Censored Democracy". U. Denv. Sports & Ent. LJ 7. 7 (62).
4. "BJP Yuva Morcha campaign". The Hindu. Chennai, India. 5 April 2009. Archived from the original on 8 April 2009. Retrieved 5 April 2009.
5. "BJYM holds protest march against UPA govt". The Indian Express. Archived from the original on 25 September 2012. Retrieved 16 May 2008.
6. "BJYM demands special policy for youth". The Hindu. Chennai, India. 29 November 2007. Retrieved 27 December 2007.
7. "BJYM demands facilities for poor patients". The Hindu. Chennai, India. 5 September 2008. Archived from the original on 18 September 2008. Retrieved 5 September 2008.
8. "BJYM protests attacks on Indian students in Australia". The Hindu. Chennai, India. 2 June 2009. Archived from the original on 20 June 2009. Retrieved 2 June 2009.
9. "Indian students in Australia slam BJP protests". Theindian.com. Archived from the original on 7 June 2009. Retrieved 2 June 2009.
10. "Government soft on terror, says BJYM". The Hindu. Chennai, India. 26 October 2008. Retrieved 26 October 2008.