Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): The BJP is mulling over the names of candidates for 151 seats. Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, party’s state unit president VD Sharma, national co-organisational secretary Shivprakash, Union Ministers Bhupendra Yadav, Ashwini Vaishnav and Narendra Singh Tomar discussed the issue at the CM’s residence late Wednesday night.
After the party announced candidates for 79 seats, the senior leaders discussed candidates for rest of the seats.
The party is getting ready to issue the fourth list of candidates.
Besides a few seats which the BJP lost, the party leadership will declare candidates for the seats from where several legislators may not get tickets.
The BJP wants to field 50 fresh candidates in the election. It has, so far, announced 17 fresh candidates. Now, the party is planning to give tickets to youths for a few more seats.
In 2008, the BJP gave tickets to young candidates and got the benefits of it. The party is carrying out the same policy this time, which senior leaders discussed.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah is coming to Bhopal on October 1. Shah will hold a meeting with the senior leaders on the basis of the inferences drawn at the discussions held on Wednesday.
Afterwards, the party’s central election committee will hold a meeting to declare the fourth list of candidates.
No criteria, 76-year-old may get ticket
The BJP is not following any criteria for giving tickets. By fielding Union ministers and Members of Parliament, the party leadership has made it clear that only winnable candidates will be fielded.
Now, the party is planning to field 76-year-old Jayant Malaiya who is seeking tickets for his son, Siddharth, but the party wants to field senior Malaiya.
The party removed Babulal Gaur and Sartaj Singh from the ministry on the grounds that they were above 75 and denied them tickets.
But the BJP is not going to take into account the age criteria this time for distributing tickets.
