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BJP banks on veteran leaders to retain power in Rajasthan
A senior state BJP leader said tickets were given on the basis of winnability and the party decided to go with known candidates in some tight contests where it had few options.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has decided to go largely with established leaders in its first list of 131 candidates for the Rajasthan polls. The party has nominated 85 sitting MLAs and dropped 25. The 21 other tickets have gone to leaders who have contested elections before.
The BJP held 120 of the 131 seats for which it declared candidates in the first list.
A senior state BJP leader said tickets were given on the basis of winnability and the party decided to go with known candidates in some tight contests where it had few options.
“On several seats especially in the Bikaner and Shekhawati belts there were no strong options and so the party went with current candidates,” said a BJP leader from Hanumangarh.
A second party leader said on condition of anonymity that during a meeting in Delhi to decide candidates, chief minister Vasundhara Raje told the central leadership that a large-scale change of candidates would give the message that the government had failed to perform at a time when the BJP is fighting the election on a development plank.
It was also felt that on many high-risk seats there were no strong alternative candidates and changing a candidate might not ensure a win, so the party decided to go ahead with incumbents, said a third BJP leader familiar with the developments.
“The high command seems to have played safe and gone with Raje. They didn’t want any trouble ahead of the elections. Their focus is on the 2019 general elections,” said the leader.
Rajasthan has 200 assembly seats and goes to the polls on November 7. The BJP has suffered losses in a string of recent bypolls in the state and is fighting to retain power. The first list saw the axe fall on six cabinet and three ministers of state, including PWD minister Yunus Khan, health minister Kalicharan Saraf and industry minister Rajpal Singh Shekhawat.
Political analyst Narayan Bareth said it seemed Raje prevailed over the central leadership. “There was a perception that she would be sidelined. But the list has bust that view.”
“However, the BJP will have to bear the brunt of anti-incumbency against Raje and the state government,” he said.
“Raje’s future depends on the Rajasthan result. The credit or discredit now lies with her. And if the BJP loses, then she will be in a difficult position,” said Bareth. The list that was declared late on Sunday has 12 women, 32 youngsters, 17 SC and 19 ST candidates. There are 17 Rajput and 26 Jat candidates who have got tickets as the party tries to win over the two major communities.
State BJP in-charge Avinash Rai Khanna refuted speculation that the list had Raje’s stamp on it, saying it was the party’s list. “Workers have been given representation. The tickets have been given keeping in mind the of the party and the winnability of the candidate,” he said.
“We have changed 25 candidates. The second list is yet to be declared. There will be more changes,” said BJP spokesperson Mukesh Pareek.
Congress spokesperson Archana Sharma said the BJP list proved that the party has once again given a chance to those candidates who have insulted the mandate of the people. “People are disappointed and the BJP will definitely lose the election,” Sharma added.
