BJP unwilling to name CM, AAP to field convenor Kejriwal

Unlike the previous assembly elections, the forthcoming polls in the city is likely to be more party oriented rather than stressing on the personalty of the chief ministerial candidate as only Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is planning to declare it’s chief ministerial candidate at this point in time.

On the other hand, a senior Delhi BJP leader said: ‘The party is most likely to go to polls without a chief ministerial candidate this time.’ He further added that the party is confident with its experiments in Haryana and Maharashtra where the chief ministerial candidate’s name was decided after the elections. Several BJP MLAs also banked on the representation of Haryana and Maharashtra model of assembly elections in the city. ‘It’s a fact that the party does not have any unanimous chief ministerial candidate. So declaration of one leader as chief ministerial candidate would create factionalism within the party,’ said a senior BJP MLA. 

He further added: ‘The party would benefit the most if prime minister Narendra Modi becomes the face of the party in the polls. In such a situation, the entire party will fight unitedly.’ 

The issue of chief ministerial candidate was a big one in the last Delhi assembly elections as the party superseded the then Delhi BJP president and projected Harsh Vardhan, now Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare, as chief ministerial candidate hardly one month before the polls after huge political drama. The post election analysis of the BJP strategists had revealed that if Vardhan was declared earlier, BJP would have won the elections. 

As the central leadership had made it clear that sitting MPs would not go back to state politics, which was also followed in the case of Union Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari for the post of Maharashtra chief minister; Vardhan is unlikely to send to assembly politics. 

However, senior most BJP MLA Jagdish Mukhi who was hardly pitching for the post of chief ministerial candidate in the run up to form government in the suspended assembly but the party seems in no mood to project him for the post of chief ministership. The chief ministerial hopefuls of BJP also include Satish Upadhyay and Vijay Goel.

The AAP, however, did not munch its words on the issue. 

‘Kejriwal would be our chief ministerial candidate and we will win the elections,’ said AAP spokesperson immediately. 

The Congress who had banked on former chief minister Sheila Dikshit with the slogan: ‘Sheila 4 fourth term’ is not willing to project anyone as the chief ministerial candidate. 

However, Delhi Congress president Arvinder Singh Lovely is being considered as a natural contestant for the post.