B. L. Santhosh
1 February 1967
Hiriadka (Udupi district),
Mysore State (present-day Karnataka), India
Early life[edit]
Santhosh hails from Bommarabettu Grama Panchayat, Udupi District in Karnataka and belongs to the Shivalli Brahmin community.[10][11][12] He studied Instrumentation Technology in BDT College of Engineering in Davanagere, Karnataka.[13]
Career[edit]
Santosh started as a RSS Pracharak (full-time worker) in 1993. He had stints in Mysuru, Shivamogga and later in Bangalore. He returned to Shivamogga in the early 2000s.[14] In 2006 he moved to BJP as the General Secretary (Organization) for Karnataka. He remained in the post till 2014. This also saw the BJP in power between 2008 and 2013.
In 2014, Santosh was made the Joint General Secretary (Organization) of BJP. In 2019 he was elevated to the post General Secretary (Organization) of BJP. He is someone who is attributed to have spotted and groomed youth leaders such as Pratap Simha and Tejasvi Surya in Karnataka.[5]
Detractors say Santosh wields a lot of control in Karnataka BJP and within the BJP high command at the center. People quote the fact that 2 unknown faces, Ashok Gasti and Eranna Kadadi, were made members of Rajya Sabha by the BJP in June 2020 much against the wishes of the Chief Minister.[15]
Controversy[edit]
Santosh in January 2020 reported that Valmikis, Bhovis, Waddars, and other Dalit societies are migrants, not native communities. J. N. Ganesh criticized him and said his assertion was incorrect. The Federation of Progressive Organizations organized a protest, demanding that he be charged under the SC/ST Act.[16]