In a DPCC meeting held in April, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi was apparently displeased at the party doling out tickets to the offsprings of party leaders and post holders while denying other candidates a fair chance.
But after six months, when the party released its final list of 15 candidates for the Delhi Assembly polls on Friday, word spread that as many as seven Congress leaders including MPs and MLAs who were lobbying for tickets for their sons have been disappointed.
Prominent leaders whose sons have been denied tickets are Rajya Sabha MP Pervez Hashmi, who was seeking a ticket for his son, Farhan Hashmi, from Okhla constituency. Pervez conveyed to the party top brass that if not his son, he should be given a party ticket from Okhla.
Instead, Asif Mohammed Khan, who joined Congress recently after leaving the RJD, was given Okhla seat. Congress MLA Mangat Ram Singhal had demanded a ticket for his son Ajay. Even though Mangat Ram got a ticket from Adarsh Nagar, his son was denied one.
Four-time Congress MLA Mukesh Sharma was reportedly lobbying to get a ticket for his son Ankit, but was unsuccessful. Union Woman and Child Development Minister Krishna Tirath had tried to get a ticket for her daughter Yashvi in vain.
Former Speaker Chaudhary Prem Singh had sought a ticket for his sons Yudhvir and Pramod, though he got a ticket, his sons did not. However, Congress MP Mahabal Mishra succeeded in obtaining a ticket for his son Vinay from Palam. Sajjan Kumar’s son Jagpravesh too got a ticket from Sangam Vihar.