In a recent development, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) unveiled its 10th list comprising 9 candidates for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. Among the notable mentions is the nomination of the party’s Rajya Sabha MP Neeraj Shekhar from the Ballia constituency in Uttar Pradesh.
Neeraj Shekhar, who hails from a political lineage as the son of former Prime Minister Chandra Shekhar, previously represented Ballia in the Lok Sabha from 2007 to 2014 under the banner of the Samajwadi Party (SP). However, in 2014, he faced defeat against his BJP counterpart and subsequently transitioned to the Rajya Sabha.
Following his departure from the SP, Shekhar joined the BJP and secured a seat in the Upper House of Parliament. Additionally, the BJP has nominated Paras Nath Rai to contest from Ghazipur, where he will face off against Afzal Ansari, a candidate backed by the Samajwadi Party and Congress alliance.
The latest list introduces eight fresh names, including a replacement for the BJP candidate in West Bengal’s Asansol constituency. Notably, the Bhojpuri star Pawan Singh, who was initially fielded in Asansol, has been substituted by the incumbent BJP MP SS Ahluwalia.
Moreover, Sanjay Tandon has been nominated from Chandigarh, while B.P. Saroj and Jaiveer Singh Thakur will vie for victory from Machhlishahr and Mainpuri respectively. Vinod Sonkar and Praveen Patel are set to contest from Kaushambi and Phulpur constituencies respectively, with Neeraj Tripathi rounding off the list as the BJP’s nominee from Prayagraj.
With the Lok Sabha elections scheduled to be conducted in seven phases commencing from April 19, approximately 97 crore eligible voters are anticipated to participate in the electoral process. The counting of votes is slated for June 4. In the previous 2019 elections, the BJP secured 303 seats, while the Indian National Congress (INC) managed to secure only 52 seats. Similarly, in the 2014 elections, the BJP clinched 282 seats, with the INC securing a mere 44 seats.
