AAP wants Yashwant Sinha to contest from New Delhi in 2019 Lok Sabha elections

The Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is in talks with former Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Yashwant Sinha to contest the 2019 elections from the national capital on the party’s ticket

The Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is in talks with former Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Yashwant Sinha to contest the 2019 elections from the national capital on the party’s ticket.

Former Minister of Finance Yashwant Sinha and Former Chief Minister of Maharashtra Prithviraj Chavan during the book launch of “Demonetization and The Black Economy” by Arun Kumar at Press Club, New Delhi, India, on Monday, March 19, 2018. (Raj K Raj/HT PHOTO)

The AAP wants Sinha, a former cabinet minister in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee-led NDA government and a vocal critic of PM Narendra Modi, to contest from the New Delhi Lok Sabha constituency.

Sanjay Singh, AAP Rajya Sabha MP, has been tasked with convincing Sinha to contest on the party’s ticket as the AAP considers him a formidable candidate in the upcoming polls, a party leader said. “Yes, talks are on with Yashwant Sinha,” said an AAP leader who did not want to be named. “But everything is speculative in politics unless confirmed,” the leader said.

Sinha said he did not consider it appropriate to comment on the matter. “Arvind Kejriwal asked people in a public meeting in Noida whether I should contest (polls) or not and people said yes,” Sinha said.

The seven Lok Sabha seats in Delhi are held by the BJP. Until now, the AAP has announced likely candidates for five of these seats. The party is yet to announce names for two seats — New Delhi and West Delhi.

Party treasurer Raghav Chaddha from south Delhi; Atishi, a former advisor to the Delhi education minister, from east Delhi; Pankaj Gupta, AAP national secretary, from Chandni Chowk; Dilip Pandey, party spokesperson, from North-east Delhi and Guggan Singh, the former BJP MLA who had joined AAP ahead of Bawana bypolls last year, from North-west Delhi could be likely AAP candidates for 2019 polls.

The party, however, is yet to issue a formal list of candidates.

“He (Sinha) doesn’t want to lose the election, which is why he has not agreed yet. Maybe he wants to know who the BJP and Congress will field from the New Delhi seat,” the AAP leader said, when asked about whether Sinha was considering the party’s proposal. BJP’s Meenakshi Lekhi is the incumbent MP from New Delhi.

Sources said the AAP is also in touch with BJP MP Shatrughan Sinha to field him from the west Delhi seat. But the actor-turned-politician is interested in contesting from his current Lok Sabha seat Patna Sahib in Bihar on an Rashtriya Janata Dal ticket.

Yashwant Sinha and Shatrughan Sinha shared a stage with Delhi CM Kejriwal during the Jan Adhikar rally held in Noida earlier this month.