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Journalism of Courage
Having set off several fires with its first Rajasthan list, sidelining many established names, the BJP has played it safe with its second one. The 83 names declared on Saturday include Vasundhara Raje from her constituency Jhalrapatan and several of her key loyalists.
While there were expectations that the BJP might field some more Union ministers to beef up its chances in the close Rajasthan race — after having done so in Madhya Pradesh — none figured in the second list.
While the first list included seven MPs, the second one on Saturday has none. Narpat Singh Rajvi, one of the big names dropped to accommodate an MP, finds place in the second list.
More than three-fourths of the BJP’s 70 sitting MLAs have now been refielded. The most prominent of them, of course, is Raje, who has got a respite with tickets to many loyalists, after being systematically sidelined in the BJP. She will contest again from Jhalrapatan, a seat she has been winning since 2003.
Rajvi, dropped from his seat Vidhayadhar Nagar for Rajsamand MP and Jaipur royal Diya Kumari, has got a ticket from Chittorgarh. Rajvi, the son-in-law of former Vice-President of India and BJP stalwart Bhairon Singh Shekhawat and a leader lately seen as close to Raje, had openly expressed displeasure at being denied a ticket.
He should be happy with Chittorgarh, a seat he won in 1993 and 2003.
Other Raje loyalist MLAs who have got tickets are Pratap Singh Singhvi (Chhabra) and Kalicharan Saraf (from Jaipur’s Malviya Nagar). Some of the candidates are leaders whom Raje brought into the BJP, including incumbent MLAs Siddhi Kumari from Bikaner East and Ramswaroop Lamba from Nasirabad; while others were ministers during her second term as CM, including Hem Singh Bhadana, Vasudev Devnani, Anita Bhadel, Pushpendra Singh Ranawat, Otaram Dewasi and Srichand Kripalani.
The sitting BJP MLAs who have not been refielded include octogenarian Suryakanta Vyas (Soorsagar seat) and Ashok Lahoty (Sanganer). Lahoty is considered a Raje loyalist.
Instead of his present seat Churu, Leader of the Opposition Rajendra Rathore will contest from Taranagar. He has been an MLA from Taranagar.
Former state BJP president Satish Poonia has been refielded from Amer.
From Udaipur, which is vacant after the BJP moved senior leader Gulab Chand Kataria as the Governor of Assam, the party has fielded Tarachand Jain.
A member of the erstwhile Udaipur royal family, Vishwaraj Singh Mewar, who joined the BJP just days back, has been fielded from Nathdwara. He will take on sitting Congress MLA and Assembly Speaker C P Joshi.
Former Nagaur MP Jyoti Mirdha, who recently switched to the BJP from the Congress, had got ticket from the Nagaur Assembly seat.
