BuzzBytes New Delhi, March 1: The BJP’s Central Election Committee (CEC) held a meeting to discuss Lok Sabha poll candidates for around 16 states, with indications that the first list may feature several heavyweights. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP’s National President J.P. Nadda, and Union Ministers Amit Shah and Rajnath Singh, among others, deliberated over probable candidates for states like Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Assam, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Goa, and Uttarakhand.The meeting, which lasted over five hours, began around 10:30 pm on Thursday at the party’s headquarters. Before the meeting, Shah and Nadda met with Modi at his residence for consultations. The first list is expected to include names like Modi, Shah, and Singh from their current seats of Varanasi, Gandhinagar, and Lucknow, respectively. It may also feature over 110 names, including Union ministers and some contesting Lok Sabha elections after serving in the Rajya Sabha.States like Bihar and Maharashtra, where the BJP has key allies, and states open to alliances, like Andhra Pradesh, were not discussed during this meeting. In Uttar Pradesh, the party is likely to leave six seats to allies, including the Jayant Singh-led RLD. Though the CEC went through a large number of seats, not all may be included in the first list. Union ministers like Rajeev Chandrasekhar, Bhupender Yadav, Mansukh Mandaviya, Dharmendra Pradhan, Jyotiraditya Scindia, and Parshottam Rupala are expected to be fielded.The BJP aims to name candidates for a significant number of Lok Sabha seats before the Election Commission announces the poll schedule. Elections are anticipated to be held in April-May. The party may include seats it has targeted for improvement after contesting unsuccessfully in 2019 in the initial candidate lists. The BJP’s candidate lists often attract attention for both those included and excluded, and observers are keen to see whether well-known names will be dropped or new faces given opportunities.
BJP’s Central Election Committee Deliberates on Lok Sabha Candidates for 16 States
