Patna, March 12: Three senior BJP leaders from Bihar suffered a jolt today after the party chief, Amit Shah, dropped them from the national executive and included two new faces from the state in his 111-member team.

Six-time BJP MLA from Chanpatia (West Champaran) Chandra Mohan Rai, BJP Rajya Sabha MP and party fundraiser in Bihar Ravindra Kishore Sinha and former BJP MLC Baleshwar Singh Bharti did not figure in Shah's list. The newcomers in the national executive from the state are former MLC Ganga Prasad and former secretary in petroleum ministry R.S. Pandey, who was denied ticket in the last general election from Valmikinagar constituency.

The BJP national executive has 16 leaders from Bihar now. Earlier, the number stood at 17. The figure dropped by one after two new leaders from the state were inducted in the team in place of three.

A BJP insider said: "Shah has his own style of functioning. He believes in setting up team of young members. As Bihar elections are due this year, he might have dropped the old guards and inducted fresh faces from the state."

Rai, a six-term MLA who joined the BJP during the days of Jan Sangh in 1969, was visibly depressed after being dropped from the national executive. He said: "The old members in the party knew me, but the new leaders have their own prerogative and might not have considered me fit as an executive committee member. I am upset but I not angry because new members should be given the opportunity to serve the party."

Former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee had inducted Rai in the party during his visit to Bettiah. He had revolted against the state BJP leadership after the party denied Lok Sabha ticket to him last year. Rai had resigned from all the party posts in protest and announced that he would not contest the Assembly elections.

Sinha, arguably the BJP's biggest fundraiser in the state, was not that upset. He told The Telegraph: "I have no remorse for not being re-inducted as a national executive member. I am happy with the responsibility the party leadership has given to me by making me a Rajya Sabha member."

Sinha, who runs SIS (Security and Intelligence Services India Ltd), was a member of the BJP's national executive for the last two terms.

The biggest surprise in the fresh list of national executive members of the BJP is the inclusion of Pandey as a special invitee. Former petroleum secretary Pandey had joined the BJP a few months before the general election and was said to be a contender for the party ticket from Valmikinagar. But the BJP fielded Satish Chandra Dubey.

Besides Pandey and former MLC Ganga Prasad, Ravi Shankar Prasad, Radha Mohan Singh, Dharmendra Pradhan, Sushil Kumar Modi and Nand Kishore Yadav are among the other national executive members of the BJP from the state.

The national executive and the BJP office-bearers would meet in Bangalore on April 3 and 4 to take stock of the party's performance and that of the government it leads at the Centre as well as to chalk out strategy for the crucial state elections in Bihar this year and Bengal in 2016.