New Delhi, Aug 25 (PTI) The BJP on Thursday appointed its vice-president Soudan Singh as incharge and senior leader from Jammu and Kashmir Devender Singh Rana as co-incharge for the upcoming assembly polls in Himachal Pradesh.

The announcement for party's poll in-charges for Himachal Pradesh, where elections are likely to be held later this year, was made by BJP general secretary Arun Singh in a statement.

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BJP is aiming to break the trend of changing government in Himachal Pradesh by retaining power in the state. At present, BJP has 43 MLAs in the 68-member Himachal Pradesh assembly.

Singh, stationed at Chandigarh, has been looking after party work in several northern states, including Himachal Pradesh.

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For Rana, a mass leader from Jammu, this is first big responsibility in the party, after he joined BJP last year from National Conference.

BJP insiders see this as a reflection of Rana's rising graph within the party, as he has been given responsibility of the home state of party president J P Nadda.

Rana, an engineering graduate and three-time legislator in the erstwhile assembly of Jammu and Kashmir, is seen as a person with great skills of political management. His joining infused a fresh energy in Jammu and Kashmir's BJP unit, as he enjoys influence in the region.

A popular Hindu face, Rana was the only non-BJP candidate who managed to win Nagrota seat during 2014 assembly elections in Jammu district as a National Conference nominee, while remaining seats went to the BJP.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)