The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Friday released the first list of 34 candidates, including 13 Sikhs and two women, for the Punjab assembly elections scheduled for February 20.
Later, the party also announced Punjab BJP chief Ashwani Sharma’s candidature from Pathankot, taking the total to 35. A senior leader said the name was cleared by the parliamentary board, but because of communication gap, it could not appear on the afternoon list.
On its traditional strongholds, the party has mostly banked upon its old guards. However, among 23 such seats, it has declared candidates from only 17 while consensus eludes on the remaining six.
The party has reposed faith again from the same seats in most of its former MLAs and ministers who had contested the previous two polls, including Manoranjan Kalia from Jalandhar Central, KD Bhandari from Jalandhar North, Surjit Jyani from Fazilka and Tikshan Sud from Hoshiarpur.
Two sitting MLAs Dinesh Babbu and Arun Narang have been retained from Pathankot and Abohar, respectively. The party has also retained former minister Chunni Lal Bhagat’s son Manohar Bhagat, who had contested the 2017 polls unsuccessfully from Jalandhar West, whereas from Mukerian, party leader Jangi Lal Mahajan will contest again.
From Amritsar North, where former BJP minister Anil Joshi is contesting on the Shiromani Akali Dal ticket this time, the saffron party has fielded its councillor Sukhwinder Singh Pintu. Other fresh faces fielded on the party’s traditional seats include Raghunath Singh Rana from Dasuya, Gurdev Sharma from Ludhiana Central and advocate Bikramjeet Singh Sidhu from Ludhiana West. The BJP is contesting the elections for the 117-seat Punjab assembly in alliance with Capt Amarinder Singh-led Punjab Lok Congress and the Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa-led Shiromani Akali Dal (Sanyukt).
{{/usCountry}}From Amritsar North, where former BJP minister Anil Joshi is contesting on the Shiromani Akali Dal ticket this time, the saffron party has fielded its councillor Sukhwinder Singh Pintu. Other fresh faces fielded on the party’s traditional seats include Raghunath Singh Rana from Dasuya, Gurdev Sharma from Ludhiana Central and advocate Bikramjeet Singh Sidhu from Ludhiana West. The BJP is contesting the elections for the 117-seat Punjab assembly in alliance with Capt Amarinder Singh-led Punjab Lok Congress and the Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa-led Shiromani Akali Dal (Sanyukt).
{{/usCountry}}Three former Congress leaders are on the list
Three Congress leaders who shifted to the BJP recently have been rewarded tickets, including former minister Rana Gurmit Sodhi, who has been fielded from Hindu-dominated Ferozepur Urban seat. Nimisha Mehta, former Punjab Congress spokesperson and close aide of chief minister Charanjit Channi, has been fielded from Garhshankar. Mehta joined the BJP the very next day of being denied the Congress ticket.
Meanwhile, former Congress MLA and industrialist Arvind Khanna will contest from Sangrur seat. Names of sitting Qadian MLA Fatehjung Singh Bajwa, who is interested to contest from Batala, and sitting Congress MLA from Moga Harjot Kamal are not on the first list. Apart from Nimisha Mehta, Renu Kashyap, daughter of a former MLA, is the only woman candidate who has got the ticket in the first list. She will contest from Dinanagar reserved segment.
Tohra’s grandson to contest from Amloh
The BJP has named former Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) chief and Akali stalwart late Gurcharan Singh Tohra’s grandson Kanwarveer Singh Tohra from Amloh seat of Fatehgarh Sahib district.
Former IAS officer SR Laddar has been fielded from Gill reserved segment of Ludhiana. Former police officer Ashok Bath is on the list from Balachaur segment. From Khanna, former AAP leader Gurpreet Bhatti is the BJP choice.
Former SAD leaders who have been fielded are former MLA Didar Singh Bhatti from Fatehgarh Sahib, former MLA Mohan Lal from Banga, and former Youth Akali Dal leader Ravi Preet Sidhu, who was a close aide of Akali leader Bikram Singh Majithia, from Talwandi Sabo.
BJP general secretary Tarun Chugh, who announced the names during a press conference in New Delhi, said the party has given preference to each and every segment of society in the first list. “The list includes 12 people who belong to farming families while eight belong to scheduled castes,” said Chugh.
Other candidates are Baljinder Singh Dakoha from Sri Hargobindpur, Navreet Singh Safipur from Tarn Taran, Ranjit Singh Khojewala from Kapurthala, Kanwar Narendera Singh from Jagraon, Dr Dilbag Rai from Chabbewal, Puran Chand from Jalalabaad, Rajesh Phatela from Muktsar, Gaurav Kakkar from Faridkot, Rupinder Singh Sidhu from Bhucho Mandi, Jagjit Singh Milkha from Sirdulgarh and Sanjeev Khanna from Dera Bassi.