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New Delhi

Congress releases first list

Gaurav Vivek Bhatnagar

36 sitting MLAs among 48 candidates

NEW DELHI: The Congress on Wednesday announced its first list of 48 candidates for the upcoming Delhi Assembly elections.

The party has made ten “changes” in the list of 53 that was unofficially circulated on October 25. It has now fielded 36 sitting MLAs, including Ramvir Singh Bidhuri and Dayanand Chandila who had joined it recently, besides six municipal councillors, including two independents, and two DPCC office-bearers.

As per the earlier “list”, Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit would contest the election from New Delhi, while her Cabinet colleagues A. K. Walia has been fielded from Laxmi Nagar, Haroon Yusuf from Ballimaran, Arvinder Singh Lovely from Gandhi Nagar, Mangat Ram Singhal from Adarsh Nagar and Raj Kumar Chauhan from Mangolpuri. Yoganand Shastri, who was seeking a ticket from Malviya Nagar, lost the race to Hauz Khas MLA Kiran Walia and has not got a ticket so far. Both Mehrauli and Narela, from where this Jat leader might contest, have been put in the pending list.

The party has also not taken a final call on Greater Kailash from where the BJP is fielding its Chief Ministerial candidate, Vijay Kumar Malhotra. Earlier, Jitender Singh Jeetu’s name had been floated, but now the seat has been kept pending. Former Delhi Mayor Jaishree Panwar and former Councillor Virender Kasana are in the running for nomination here.

In a major setback to Ms. Dikshit, the party has also chosen to field S. C. Vats from his Shakur Basti constituency. Earlier, the name of Devraj Arora had been circulated. And Rajinder Nagar, from where a confidant of Ms. Dikshit and Congress chief whip Ramakant Goswami was tipped to get the ticket, has been put in the pending list.

Likewise, while MLA Jile Singh Chauhan’s name had figured from Burari earlier, the constituency is now pending. Other party leaders who had figured in the “first list” but now find their constituencies pending are Harnam Singh from Deoli, Tek Chand Sharma from Sangam Vihar, Akhil Bansal from Shalimar Bagh, Mahmood Zia from Matia Mahal and Suresh Malik from Hari Nagar.

The party is yet to decide on the final candidates from Sadar Bazar, where two MLAs — Rajesh Jain and Shadi Ram — are the main aspirants, and Jangpura where MLAs Tajdar Babar and Tarvinder Singh Marwah are in the hunt. Incidentally both Matia Mahal, where Ms. Babar can go, and Tilak Nagar, where Mr. Marwah may be accommodated, have been kept vacant.

In its “new” decisions, the party has given the nod to Councillor Anjana Pracha from Trilokpuri and independent Councillor Nand Kishore from Vikaspuri. Two former student leaders, Alka Lamba and Ragini Naik, were among the aspirants in Vikaspuri.

The other seats on which a final decision is awaited are Kasturba Nagar, Mundka, Kirari, Rohini, Babarpur, Karawal Nagar, Wazirpur, Najafgarh and Ghonda. Three-time MLA and Delhi Jat Board vice-chairman Bheesham Sharma is seeking re-nomination from Ghonda.

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