The BJP on Thursday announced new state unit chiefs for Delhi, Punjab, Haryana and Tripura, setting in motion an organisational shuffle under newly appointed party president Nitin Nabin.

Union minister of state Harsh Malhotra was appointed Delhi BJP chief, while Archana Gupta was named president of the party’s Haryana unit.

In poll-bound Punjab, where Assembly elections are due early next year, the BJP picked former Congress leader Kewal Singh Dhillon as its state president in a move aimed at broadening its political base. In Tripura, sitting MLA and youth leader Abhishek Debroy was appointed the party’s state unit chief.

The appointments were seen as part of the ruling party’s wider exercise to revamp its organisational structure under newly appointed BJP president Nabin, signalling a generational shift within the party leadership.

Party insiders also viewed the appointments as a signal of an impending shuffle of the Union council of ministers in tandem with the organisational changes.

With the BJP largely adhering to its “one leader, one post” principle, the appointment of junior Union minister Malhotra as Delhi BJP chief was seen as an indication of a possible change in the ministry.

Malhotra, who began his political career at the municipal level, is a first-time Lok Sabha member from East Delhi. His appointment reflected the party’s attempt to bank on a grassroots leader to further strengthen the organisation in the national capital. The BJP returned to power in Delhi after 27 years in the 2025 Assembly elections.

The most significant appointment was that of Dhillon as the Punjab BJP chief. The move marked the first time the party had chosen a Jat Sikh leader to head its state unit in Punjab, where the BJP’s support base has traditionally been concentrated among Hindu voters.

With Punjab headed for Assembly polls in the second half of next year, the BJP is seeking to position itself as a major challenger to the incumbent Aam Aadmi Party after dislodging it from power in Delhi. Dhillon, who replaces Sunil Jakhar, is also a former Congress leader. He served as a Congress MLA from 2007 to 2017 before joining the BJP in 2022.

Another significant appointment was that of Archana Gupta as Haryana BJP chief, making her the first woman in more than four decades to head the party in the largely patriarchal state known for its skewed sex ratio.

As Gupta thanked the party leadership for “reposing faith in a woman party worker”, BJP leaders said her elevation would help further consolidate the party’s support among women voters.