BJP replaces Haridwar LS candidate on VHP demand

Acceding to a Vishwa Hindu Parishad demand, BJP dropped its declared candidate from Haridwar constituency and announced a Hindu monk as its official candidate.

Acceding to a Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) demand, BJP on Saturday dropped its declared candidate from Haridwar constituency and announced a Hindu monk as its official candidate.

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"The party has made a small change in its list of candidates for Uttarakhand. Swami Yatindranand Giri would be our candidate instead of Madan Kausik," the party's office secretary Shyam Jaju told PTI.

Kausik is a minister in the Uttarakhand government of BJP.

According to sources, VHP leaders, including Ashok Singhal, had recently led a delegation to party leader LK Advani, demanding that the Haridwar seat be left for "sadhus and saints".