NEW DELHI: The BJP’s Central Election Committee (CEC), led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and party chief JP Nadda, met on Wednesday to finalise candidates for the remaining assembly seats in Rajasthan and Telangana. During this two-hour session, they meticulously assessed the electability of each candidate. After deliberations, the CEC approved approximately 60 out of the 76 candidates considered for Rajasthan. An insider hinted at the potential release of the third Rajasthan candidate list on Thursday, followed by Telangana’s lists.
The CEC also entrusted Nadda with the gradual release of candidate lists for the remaining assembly seats in these states. Discussions also covered incumbent MLAs, who would receive tickets for these two states.
Earlier in the day, the BJP held a meeting to shortlist candidates at the party’s extension building, attended by Nadda, Amit Shah and other leaders. This meeting preceded the evening CEC meeting at the party headquarters.
For Telangana, 66 names were presented at the CEC meeting, with approximately 55 receiving approval. Rajasthan’s 200-member state elections are scheduled for November 25. Modi also discussed the party’s candidate lists for Telangana and other election strategies for the November 30 elections to the 119-member Telangana assembly. So far, the BJP has announced candidates for 53 seats in Telangana. Senior BJP leaders, including Amit Shah and Nadda, shared their perspectives on the candidates at the CEC meeting.
Core CEC members, such as BJP’s Telangana in-charge Tarun Chugh and Rajasthan’s BJP in-charge Arun Singh, also attended the meeting. The BJP has fielded seven MPs in Rajasthan and three in Telangana for the upcoming elections, aiming to challenge the incumbent governments of Congress and the BRS on grounds of corruption, crimes and development failures.