Senior BJP leaders believe that the bigger challenge is the alleged false campaign unleashed by AAP. | Representational image
Delhi polls | Fear of rebellion behind BJP’s delay in naming all candidates
While the party managed to quell rebellion in some of the seats where candidates were announced, it is yet to name its candidates for 11 seats
With a little over three weeks left for polling in Delhi, the BJP is still struggling to announce the names of all its candidates for the crucial elections.
Though the BJP has fielded some big names in the high-stakes battle against the ruling AAP to return to power after a gap of 26 years, the presence of some of these high-profile candidates has created more difficulties for the party rather than helping create a momentum in its favour.
Also read: Delhi polls: BJP steps up outreach campaigns in Dalit-dominated seats
Voices of dissent
The first setback for the BJP came after it announced the name of Kapil Mishra from the Karawal Nagar seat by replacing Mohan Singh Bisht, the sitting party MLA. The impact of the Bisht’s rebellion was such that the BJP leadership was forced to give him ticket from neighbouring Mustafabad constituency.
Not only did the BJP’s Delhi unit leadership intervene to pacify Bisht but party chief JP Nadda also spoke to some of the senior leaders to ensure that he is accommodated immediately and the rebellion doesn’t spread to other constituencies.
“The BJP-RSS leaders are talking to all the candidates and aspirants across Delhi to ensure there are no rebellions within the party. The delay in naming the remaining 11 candidates is also because we want to ensure that people don’t speak out of turn and outside the party’s forum. In each constituency of Delhi, there are at least 4-6 aspirants and therefore senior party leaders have been specifically asked to ensure there are no rebel candidates in the fray,” a senior BJP leader in the Delhi unit told The Federal. The BJP has named 59 candidates for the Delhi Assembly elections till now.
Another high-profile candidate, Ramesh Bidhuri, recently sparked a row after he made some objectionable remarks against Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi and Delhi Chief Minister Atishi. Incidentally, Vikram Bidhuri, a relative of Ramesh Bidhuri, has rebelled against the BJP. After being denied ticket from the Tughlaqabad constituency, his aides have threatened to campaign against the official BJP candidate from the constituency.
Also read: BJP’s double-engine government will ensure clean air in Delhi: MP
Dalit outreach
Targeting 17% population of Scheduled Caste (SC) community in Delhi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah reiterated the stand of Prime Minister Narendra Modi that if the BJP comes to power in Delhi, it will not only continue with all the welfare schemes of AAP but will also roll out more for the benefit of the people.
While the BJP tried to reach out to the maximum slum clusters in Delhi, it is facing a rebellion from its SC Morcha leaders in Madipur and Kondli constituencies which have considerable population of Dalits. RSS members have also reached these constituencies and are trying to pacify the rebel factions. Senior BJP leaders believe that the bigger challenge is the alleged false campaign unleashed by AAP.
Countering AAP claims
“The challenge for the BJP is that there is a deliberate attempt by the AAP government to tarnish the BJP’s image by making false claims. The AAP leadership has told the people that if BJP comes to power, it will stop all the welfare schemes of the Delhi government. It is because of this reason that first the prime minister and then the home minister assured the people of Delhi that welfare schemes would not be stopped and the BJP will better them if it comes to power,” BJP’s national spokesperson RP Singh told The Federal.
Also read: Delhi polls: Former AAP leader, ex-CM’s son in BJP's second candidates’ list
Political analysts believe that SC communities are one of the big support bases of the AAP government in Delhi because of the welfare schemes and if the BJP is able to make a dent in it the party may expect positive results.
“The people of the financially weaker sections are one of the biggest supporters of AAP and Arvind Kejriwal and if the BJP can chip away a part of the core voter base of the AAP, then it will have an impact on the outcome of the Delhi polls. However, it will not be easy because people have faith in Kejriwal and the welfare schemes of the Delhi government,” Annapurna Nautiyal, a Dehradun-based political analyst, told The Federal.
