The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Central Election Committee’s (CEC) second meeting concluded in the national capital on Monday night, with around 90 candidates finalised for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, according to ANI sources.
An official announcement is anticipated shortly, according to party sources.
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These candidates were finalised in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, and BJP national president JP Nadda, among other key figures. Notable attendees also included Union ministers Anurag Thakur, Prahlad Joshi, Nityanand Rai, as well as party MPs and leaders from various states.
Discussions primarily focused on Lok Sabha seats in Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Karnataka, Bihar, Himachal Pradesh, and Telangana. Ongoing coalition talks in Bihar, Tamil Nadu, and Odisha might cause delays in finalising candidate lists for these states.
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The sources revealed that discussions for Gujarat included all remaining 11 seats, with names for seven seats already decided. In Madhya Pradesh, consensus was reached on four out of the five remaining seats. Deliberations were held for 25 seats in Maharashtra, eight in Telangana, and all 28 in Karnataka. The JD(S) is likely to secure three seats in Karnataka, as per sources. Additionally, talks for all four seats in Himachal Pradesh were conducted.
Seat-sharing arrangements with parties like JD(U), Lok Janshakti Party, AIADMK, JJP, and BJD in different states are yet to be finalised.
The BJP had previously released its list of 195 candidates on March 2 for the Lok Sabha polls, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking re-election from Varanasi. The 2019 Lok Sabha elections saw the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) winning 303 seats, securing a significant lead over the opposition party.
The upcoming Lok Sabha polls are expected to be conducted between April and May this year.