BJP Might Give 33 Per Cent Tickets To Women In Rajasthan, First Candidate List Likely Tomorrow: Report

After a series of meetings of Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) President JP Nadda with leaders of the Rajasthan unit, an electoral strategy has been devised.

The strategy emphasised securing 95 assembly seats where the party is perceived as relatively weak and the potential deployment of 33 per cent women candidates in the polls, as per party sources quoted by Hindustan Times.

Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat remarked that the discussions covered a spectrum of issues, encompassing the state's situation, challenges, strategy, caste and political dynamics, and the focal points of the campaign in the coming days.

Emphasising organizational unity, both Shah and Nadda urged state unit leaders to prioritize the party over personal interests and collaborate for victory in the elections. Central leaders addressed concerns such as reports of sparse crowds at certain locations during the recently concluded Parivartan yatra.

The central leadership is keen on conveying a message of women's political empowerment and explored the possibility of allocating "33 per cent tickets to women," particularly in C and D category seats identified as weak by the party.

The D category includes 19 seats not won in the last three assembly polls, while the C category comprises 76 seats won only once in the last three elections. A and B categories represent seats where the BJP holds a strong position.

The meetings delved into the party's electoral campaign, ticket distribution, and sought input from state leaders, including former Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje.

The talks covered countering the Congress government's populist schemes, the list of star campaigners, the possibility of fielding some Members of Parliament (MPs) in the assembly polls, denial of party tickets to certain sitting MLAs, and strengthening the organisational structure.

Shah and Nadda also discussed Prime Minister Narendra Modi's proposed visits to Rajasthan in the first week of October, planning public meetings in Chittorgarh on 2 October and Jodhpur on 5 October.

The BJP central election committee is expected to meet in Delhi later this week to finalise the candidates' list for the upcoming elections, possibly on 30 September.

The leaders first met with Raje for around 15 minutes on Wednesday, followed by a core committee meeting that lasted nearly three hours. The discussions involved Union Minister Pralhad Joshi, co-in-charge Nitin Patel, BJP's in-charge for the state Arun Singh, state unit president CP Joshi, Union ministers Shekhawat, Arjun Ram Meghwal, Kailash Chaudhary, leader of the Opposition in the assembly Rajendra Rathore, deputy leader of the Opposition Satish Poonia, Lok Sabha MP Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, and other leaders.

On Thursday morning, Nadda and Shah held meetings with Shekhawat and Joshi, focusing on the party's election campaign, including proposed programs of PM Modi and other central leaders in the state. When asked about the possibility of MPs participating in the assembly polls, Joshi deferred the decision to the central election committee and dismissed speculation about senior leaders being unhappy, stating that all leaders are moving forward together.