Prime Minister Narendra Modi filed his nomination from the Varanasi Lok Sabha constituency on Tuesday in the presence of his four porposers. There had been a much deliberation in the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on who should be the prime minister's proposers for his Varanasi nomination.
The party ultimately finalised four names – Pandit Ganeshwar Shastri, Baijnath Patel, Lalchand Kushwaha and Sanjay Sonkar. Among these four proposers, one is a Brahmin, two are from the OBC community, and one is from the Scheduled Caste (SC) community. These four accompanied the prime minster, who is eyeing for a third term from the Varanasi constituency, to file the nomination. According to reports, these names were discussed with Home Minister Amit Shah and BJP's national general secretary Sunil Bansal.
Who are Modi's proposers?
Pandit Ganeshwar Shastri Dravid
Pandit Ganeshwar Shastri Dravid made headlines during the Ram Temple inuguration in January. He had determined the time considered auspicious of the Pran Pratisthan of the Ram idol in the temple. His ancestors primarily resided in Tamil Nadu, South India, and he is considered a prominent scholar of astrology and Indian Vedic tradition.
Baijnath Patel
Baijnath Patel, who hails from Uttar Pradesh's Harsos village in the Sevapuri assembly constituency, has been associated with Jan Sangh for long time. He belongs to the OBC community, and the Sevapuri and Rohaniya are considered strongholds of the Kurmi Patel community.
Lalchand Kushwaha
Lalchand Kushwaha, who also comes from the OBC community, hails from Sigra of the Cantt Assembly constituency. A respected figure in the Kushwaha community, he has been a long-time worker of the BJP.
Sanjay Sonkar
PM Modi's fourth proposer is Sanjay Sonkar, who comes from the SC community. He has been significant influence in the SC community has been serving as the district president of the BJP.
