The BJP on Monday released a new list of candidates for the ensuing Lok Sabha elections. The list comprises seven candidates from Uttar Pradesh.
The party also declared sitting MP Sanjay Nishad as its candidate from Sant Kabir Nagar by dropping Sharad Tripathi, who had beaten a local BJP MLA with shoes.
BJP announces Ravi Kishan as its candidate from Gorakhpur
With these names, the party has so far announced candidates for 420 Lok Sabha seats for the seven-phase elections which will start on April 11 and continue till May 19.
Kishan, who has a popular fanbase among Bhojpuri speakers and also has reputation in Hindi and Telugu movies, had joined Indian National Congress (INC) from Jaunpur constituency in Uttar Pradesh, and contested in the 2014 general elections where he secured only 42,759 votes or 4.25 per cent of the total votes. In February 2017, Kishan left the Congress Party and joined the BJP.
Read also:
The BJP has fielded actors from various constituencies, especially in Uttar Pradesh. While Hema Malini is looking to get re-elected from Mathura, Jaya Prada was fielded from Rampur against SP’s Azam Khan and Manoj Tiwari is already in the party’s fold since 2013. Bhojpuri actor Dinesh ‘Nirahua’ Yadav also joined the BJP last month and is likely to contest the upcoming polls.