With the announcement of election dates, the ticket seekers of the BJP and the Congress have stepped up their activities. State Congress head Kamal Nath, along with party president Rahul Gandhi, has left for Delhi where they are giving final touches to the first list of the party candidates. The party’s first list, which is likely to be released during Navaratri, may contain the names of 70 candidates of whom 40 are sitting legislators.
Besides Nath, ticket aspirants are moving around MP Jyotiraditya Scindia and former chief minister Digvijaya Singh. In fact, Nath has given the responsibility to choose candidates to Singh who will have a big say in selecting contenders from Bhopal and Indore division. Ticket seekers have been told that whosoever gets the ticket, there should not be any internal squabble over it.
Nath has spoken separately to different leaders about ticket distribution in their respective areas. Leader of opposition Ajay Singh has been consulted for distribution of tickets in Vindhya region and Scindia for Chambal and Gwalior divisions. For the first time, the Congress has conducted three surveys and tickets are being distributed on the basis of its report. Apart from surveys, caste factor has also been taken into consideration for the purpose, according to Nath.
BJP list after Dussehra
The BJP will release its first list after conducting an opinion poll in districts. The last date for filing nominations is November 9. Still, there is one month’s time to select candidates, so the BJP is in no mood to hurry. The party is making a list of some important leaders who will visit districts and hold one-to-one discussion with the ticket seekers. These leaders will also consult the party office-bearers in important districts. A meeting of the state election committee will be held on the basis of its reports the names would be referred to Central Election Committee.
The BJP leaders said the first list would be issued after Dussehra. The BJP may also issue the list of those ministers and sitting legislators whose tickets cannot be cancelled. Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, state president Rakesh Singh and organisation general secretary Suhas Bhagat also held discussions with the leaders in various districts about it. These leaders have a list of candidates. The list will be issued on the basis of the opinion poll, survey report and the applications received by those leaders.
