BJP fields former MPs against Kejriwal, Atishi
New Delhi: Setting the stage for a fierce political contest, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Saturday announced its first list of 29 candidates for the 70-member Delhi Assembly elections. Among the prominent names, former MP Parvesh Verma has been nominated to contest against incumbent Chief Minister and AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal from the New Delhi constituency. Additionally, former MP Ramesh Bidhuri has been selected to run from Kalkaji, where AAP candidate Atishi is also vying for the seat.
As reported by this newspaper on December 5, the BJP has officially approved Mr. Verma’s candidature against Mr. Kejriwal in the highly contested New Delhi seat. The party has also fielded national general secretary Dushyant Kumar Gautam from Karol Bagh and Goa in-charge Ashish Sood from Janakpuri. Former ministers Arvinder Singh Lovely and Kailash Gahlot have been chosen to contest from Gandhi Nagar and Bijwasan, respectively. Satish Upadhyay, the former Delhi BJP chief, will be contesting from Malviya Nagar.
The BJP’s candidate list includes two women: Rekha Gupta from Shalimar Bagh and Kumari Rinku from Seemapuri. Ahead of the Delhi Assembly polls, the BJP has presented its initial slate featuring four sitting legislators, two former MPs, and eight former MLAs, notably excluding any candidates from the Purvanchal region.
Among the candidates are four former Delhi ministers—Kailash Gahlot and Raaj Kumar Anand from the outgoing AAP government, and Arvinder Singh Lovely and Rajkumar Chauhan from Sheila Dikshit’s tenure (2003-2013). Mr. Lovely is replacing current MLA Anil Kumar Bajpai, while Mr. Gahlot has shifted his contesting seat from Najafgarh to Bijwasan. Mr. Anand will run from the reserved Patel Nagar constituency, and Mr. Chauhan from the reserved Mangolpuri constituency.
Tarwinder Singh Marwah, a former Congress MLA, will contest from Jangpura against former Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia. Current BJP MLAs, including Vijender Gupta (Leader of the Opposition), Om Prakash Sharma, Ajay Mahawar, and Jitender Mahajan, will seek re-election from Rohini, Vishwas Nagar, Ghonda, and Rohtas Nagar respectively. Former MLAs Kulwant Rana, Manoj Shokeen, Anil Sharma, and Manjinder Singh Sirsa are contesting from Rithala, Nangloi Jat, RK Puram, and Rajouri Garden.
Narayan Dutt Sharma, a former AAP MLA from Badarpur who switched to BJP last year, will be the party’s candidate from Badarpur. Other notable names include Ashok Goel (Model Town) and Raj Kumar Bhatia (Adarsh Nagar), both of whom have previously contested assembly elections without success. Khushiram Chunar, former South MCD mayor, has been selected for the reserved seat of Ambedkar Nagar, while Kartar Singh Tanwar, an AAP MLA from Chhatarpur who recently joined BJP, will contest from the same constituency.
Virendra Sachdeva, BJP’s city unit chief, stated that the party has fielded "strong" candidates who will act as "catalysts" for change. In contrast, Congress leader Sandeep Dikshit criticised the BJP, stating, “The public is looking for an alternative to AAP. BJP may give us a fight in the upcoming state elections, but the AAP is looking very weak.” AAP leader Manish Sisodia responded by accusing the BJP of lacking a vision for Delhi and having nothing substantial to showcase regarding the achievements of BJP-governed states.
( Source : Deccan Chronicle )
Next Story