BJP’s second list of 150 names ready for release

Continuing its strategy of announcing candidates much before the rivals and even before the announcement of Lok Sabha election schedule, the BJP is all set to release another 150 names in its second list in the coming days, sources said. The second list may include names of the remaining two names for Delhi, some seats in UP, two seats in Uttarakhand, all four in Himachal Pradesh and about eight in Haryana.

The second list of candidates, expected to be out over the weekend, would mark the culmination of discussions held by BJP’s Central Election Committee, headed by PM Narendra Modi, with core groups of about eight states during the week. These states included core groups of Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Odisha.
The first list of candidates was announced one week ago with 195 names. Most of these seats were the ones which the BJP had lost in 2019 or had won or lost with a margin of less than 20,000 votes. The 195 candidates were from 6 states and two Union Territories. In the first list, the BJP denied tickets to at least 43 sitting MPs who had won in 2019. Almost one in five candidates was  replaced by the party. In the 2019 elections, it had won 303 seats, while contesting 437 seats. The party presently has 290 MPs.

Party sources states with multiple coalition partners – Maharashtra and Bihar – are posing a bigger challenge, in terms of seat-sharing, to the BJP, said a party leader, adding that the 400-seat target set by the PM for NDA has also amplified the buzz around the possibility of BJD and TDP joining the BJP-led alliance.

“In Maharashtra and Bihar, the BJP has been pushed into a delicate balancing act with all allies expecting maximum number of seats from the bigger partner,” said a BJP leader.
The discussions over Maharashtra’s 48 seats have revolved around BJP considering 10 seats for Shinde faction of Shiv Sena  and five seats for NCP-led by Ajit Pawar.
In Bihar, the BJP is keen to fight on 17 seats out of 40 but faces a challenge over distribution of seats with allies like JDU, both factions of the LJP, HAM and Upendra Kushwaha’s RLSP. While JDU chief and Bihar CM Nitish Kumar is in London, the party’s expectation of 16 seats is posing a challenge for the BJP. Sources said the BJP does not want to give JDU more than 13 seats so that other allies also get a healthy representation.
The other potential NDA allies with which the BJP is believed to be in discussions include JDS, SAD, Tamil Maanila Congress (Moopanar) and OPS-led AIADMK.

The BJP’s hyper activity in terms of candidate finalization contrasts with that of the Congress whose initial discussions have so far managed to build consensus on around five dozen seats.
While Rahul Gandhi’s nomination from Wayanad and Shashi Tharoor’s nomination from Thiruvananthapuram.