Jamshedpur, Jan. 31: Most members of the state BJP executive feel that the coming elections of the municipal bodies should take place on a party basis.

This was an outcome of the state executive of the BJP, the apex body of the organisation in the state, which ended a two-day meeting today.

The 170-member state executive discussed the issue of organising elections in the 40-odd municipal bodies that currently exist in the state.

Jamshedpur (East) BJP legislator and state urban development minister Raghubar Das brought up the issue at the meeting.

?Most members of the state BJP executive believe that elections for the local municipal bodies should take place under the party banner, but a minority want the polls to take place on a non-party basis,? said state BJP president Yudunath Pandey to The Telegraph.

Pandey added that the state BJP executive has authorised a seven-member coordination committee of the party to take a final decision on the issue since some were opposed to the idea of having elections on party basis.

The coordination panel of the state BJP, headed by Pandey, includes three members from the government and three from the organisation. Chief minister Arjun Munda is a part of this panel.

?The coordination committee of the state BJP will meet shortly and take a final decision on the issue. But the majority of the members of the state executive wants elections on a party basis,? Pandey added.

The rationale behind this was since the BJP?s had a stronger hold in urban parts of the state, it would make sense to go in for the municipal body polls on a party basis.

According to a senior member of the state executive, municipal elections along party lines would enable the BJP to gauge the mood of the voters of the urban areas.

?If the government does not do well, the party can analyse its shortcomings and take steps to improve for the Assembly polls,? he said.

Party insiders claim that some of the state?s executive members who were opposed to the idea thought there would be too many candidates who would spoil the party?s chances of winning.

?Moreover, if BJP loses the polls, it would give mileage to the Opposition and would make things difficult for the party in future,? said sources.

Pandey said the state executive has also endorsed Das? proposal to set up five municipal corporations in the state ? Jamshedpur, Bokaro, Dhanbad, Deoghar and Hazaribagh.

?Das had put the proposal and the state executive has passed it,? said the state BJP chief.

The state BJP?s endorsement on the creation of the five municipal corporations assumes significance since Jamshedpur (West) BJP legislator Saryu Rai and Tata Steel, along with a section of the city?s residents, are opposed to the idea of creation of a corporation in the city.

?There were no special discussions on whether Jamshedpur should have a corporation or not. The state executive passed a general proposal on the issue,? added Pandey.