Delhi: Parvesh Verma against Kejriwal in BJP's 1st candidates list
What's the story
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has announced its first list of candidates for the upcoming Delhi Assembly elections. The list features 29 candidates who will be contesting for 70 seats in the national capital. Among the candidates is former BJP MP Parvesh Sahib Singh Verma, who will be contesting against Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) convenor Arvind Kejriwal from the New Delhi seat.
Candidate's response
Verma expresses gratitude, criticizes Kejriwal's governance
Upon his nomination, Verma thanked the party leadership. He said, "I hope that the trust that the party has shown in me, I'll live up to it." He also slammed Kejriwal's governance during the COVID-19 pandemic and promised to solve issues like cleaning Yamuna and curbing pollution if BJP comes into power.
Candidate lineup
Other key BJP candidates for Delhi Assembly elections
The BJP's first list also features former Delhi Transport Minister Kailash Gehlot, who recently switched from the AAP to the BJP. He will be contesting from Bijwasan. Ramesh Bidhuri, erstwhile South Delhi's BJP MP, will take on Chief Minister Atishi in Kalkaji. Arvinder Singh Lovely, a former Sheila Dikshit cabinet minister who switched from Congress to the BJP last year, will contest from Gandhinagar in east Delhi.
Election overview
BJP aims to challenge AAP's dominance in Delhi
The upcoming elections are likely to be a hotly contested battle between the BJP and AAP. The BJP hopes to dethrone the AAP in Delhi, where Kejriwal's party has been in power since 2015. The AAP has already announced its candidates for all 70 Assembly constituencies in Delhi, while the Congress has chosen candidates for 47 seats thus far. The current assembly's term ends on February 23, 2025.