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Unusually for the BJP, not only the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) but also the Congress has pipped it to the post in releasing names of candidates for the coming Delhi Assembly elections. As per sources, the reason is that the BJP is planning an overhaul of the state unit, with several senior leaders from its ranks set to be fielded in the polls.
Sources said that Union Home Minister Amit Shah took matters into his own hands recently, and that the party high command is keen that its top guns lead the fight for the Capital, where it has been out of power now for nearly three decades.
The AAP has announced names for 31 of the Delhi Assembly’s 80 seats already, and the Congress for 21.
A senior BJP leader pointed to the delay in formation of the party’s State Election Committee and reconstitution of its Core Committee. The two panels screen potential candidates before the final vetting by the Central Election Committee, headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Recently, the BJP put off its ‘Parivartan Yatra’, which was to begin from December 8, taking partymen by surprise. The senior party leader said this had also triggered speculation about changes in the works. “There is no clarity on why the Parivartan Yatra did not get underway despite all the arrangements being made. Some feel this is because the national leadership is mulling over a Chief Ministerial face, others feel organisational changes are in the offing.”
Another section of the party, however, attributed the “seeming delay” in finalising candidates to the ongoing Lok Sabha Session, adding that the formation of the committees was “a mere formality” and could be done “within minutes” when required.
A senior leader suggested that fielding of Delhi unit office-bearers may not coincide with other plans of the party. “One scenario is that the management of the elections will then pass into the hands of the BJP’s seven Delhi MPs, from among whom a working president may be appointed for the elections… But this is all just in the realm of possibilities as of now,” a senior leader said.
While a few party leaders are apprehensive that a delay in announcing candidates could hurt the party’s chances, giving its nominees lesser time to campaign, others dismiss this. A leader insisted that “everything was in order” and the BJP’s national leadership was merely “busy”.
“A very crucial Session of the Lok Sabha is underway and the party’s national leadership is occupied with that. As is, all organisational activities are going on more seamlessly than we thought they would. The State Election Committee and Core Committee can be constituted within minutes, candidates can be screened and vetted before being conveyed to the national leadership in an hour,” the leader claimed.
As for a revamp of the Delhi BJP, the leader ruled out any possibility of that. “Who changes generals in the middle of a battle? All this speculation regarding organisational changes is propaganda being spread by our rivals to demoralise our workers.”
However, if the BJP doesn’t put out names soon, other leaders fear the process may be delayed till mid-January. “The party is unlikely to announce names between mid-December and mid-January since it is considered an inauspicious period. This means that the announcement is likely to happen only by January 16,” a senior leader said, adding that election-related activities had otherwise picked up pace over the past few days.
