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A film actor, a father who lost his son to communal violence, and two former Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officers are among the list of candidates who will be contesting on a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ticket in the upcoming Chhattisgarh Assembly elections.
The BJP released its second list of 64 candidates on Monday, 9 October, just hours after Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar announced the poll dates for five states, including Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Telangana, and Mizoram.
The BJP's list includes three members of Parliament. Renuka Singh, an MP from the Surguja constituency, has been given a ticket to contest from the Bharatpur-Sonhat seat. Meanwhile, Raigarh MP Gomti Sai has been fielded from Pathalgaon.
The BJP has also fielded its state party president and Bilaspur MP Arun Sao to contest the elections from the Lormi seat. The party also fielded Raman Singh, a three-term former CM, from his stronghold Rajnandgaon.
It has fielded 15 female candidates till now, including the ten female candidates whose names were declared in the second list.
The five remaining seats are Bemetara, Pandaria, Kasdol, Ambikapur, and Beltara Assembly constituencies.
While the BJP has announced its candidates for all four high-profile seats in the state capital of Raipur, it has also fielded 77-year-old Nankiram Kanwar from his Rampur seat which is reserved under the Schedule Tribe (ST) category.
A former minister, Nankiram is at the helm of the BJP's campaign against the alleged fraud in the recruitment process for the Chhattisgarh Public Service Commission.
The BJP has also fielded Ishwar Sahu, father of Bhunehswar Sahu, a 23-year-old youth killed in the communal violence which erupted in April 2023 in Chhattisgarh's Bemetara district.
Analysts suggest that Sharma's candidature is a strategic move by the BJP to appease the Brahmin community. Historically, Brahmin candidates have performed well in this region. though Anuj Sharma's nomination faced some pushback after an unsubstantiated list featuring BJP candidates went viral.
Anuj Sharma enjoys a good following among the masses due to his long and celebrated acting career in the Chhattisgarh film industry; however, his political appeal will be tested in the upcoming elections.
Two bureaucrats, Neelkanth Tekam and OP Choudhary, are also among the BJP's 85 candidates for the upcoming state Assembly polls.
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