New Delhi: Hoping to get a massive first-mover advantage as it works towards its target of winning 370 seats in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, the BJP has announced a list of 195 candidates even before the poll dates have been notified. The list includes the party’s heaviest hitters, PM Narendra Modi, who will be contesting from Varanasi for the third time, and Home Minister Amit Shah, who will be fielded again from Gandhinagar in Gujarat.As many as 34 ministers and two former chief ministers are on the list, which also includes 28 women, 47 leaders under the age of 50 and 57 members from the OBC community.
Of the 195, 51 are from the all-important state of Uttar Pradesh, 20 from West Bengal and five from Delhi.For Delhi, Praveen Khandelwal, Manoj Tiwari and Sushma Swaraj’s daughter Bansuri Swaraj are among the candidates. Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya, who had been elected from the Rajya Sabha earlier, will be contesting from Porbandar in Gujarat.
