The BJP on March 13 announced Harsh Malhotra and Yogendra Chandolia, both general secretaries of the party’s Delhi unit, as its candidates for East Delhi and North West Delhi Lok Sabha seats. Mr. Malhotra is a former Mayor of the East Delhi Municipal Corporation, while Mr. Chandolia is a former Mayor of the North Delhi Municipal Corporation.
Sitting East Delhi MP Gautam Gambhir had, earlier this month, written to BJP national president J.P. Nadda, asking to be relieved of political duties, citing cricket-related commitments. Hans Raj Hans is the sitting MP from North West Delhi, a reserved constituency.
The party had on March 2 announced the names of its candidates on five of the seven Lok Sabha seats of Delhi — Manoj Tiwari from North East Delhi, Ramvir Singh Bidhuri from South Delhi, Bansuri Swaraj from New Delhi, Kamaljeet Sehrawat from West Delhi, and Praveen Khandelwal from Chandni Chowk. Mr. Tiwari, 53, a popular Bhojpuri singer-actor, is the only candidate to have been retained by the party. He will contest from the same seat for the third time in a row.
A party source said both Mr. Malhotra and Mr. Chandolia were chosen for their “ground connect”. Another source said the two leaders stood out for their “organisation work and grounded mindset” that was seen to be placing the BJP “on the right track”.
A party leader said Mr. Malhotra’s work in organising party events and election management was appreciated by the top leadership. Another leader described Mr. Chandolia as a man who looks after the party workers and whose “dedication to the party’s principles” was recognised by the headquarters.
Reacting to the development, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) said, “The BJP has changed six out of seven candidates. This is an admission by the party that their MPs were either corrupt or ineffective. In either case, the BJP should apologise to the people of Delhi for wasting their five years.”
