The Bharatiya Janata Party has released the list of its first six candidates in Punjab. The party has picked up the best candidates it could.
They include four sitting MPs, one ex-MLA and an ex-diplomat and former ambassador to the United States.
The choice of candidates puts the BJP definitely in a stronger position. Compared to the BJP, the ruling Aam Aadmi Party has been struggling with finding candidates.
It has fielded five sitting ministers. One of the candidates it fielded has already defected to the BJP. The Congress is yet to finalise its candidates in Punjab.
The BJP has nominated a formidable lineup of candidates, including Preneet Kaur, a four-time MP and former Minister of State for External Affairs from Patiala; Ravneet Singh Bittu, a three-time MP and grandson of the late Beant Singh, a former Chief Minister of Punjab; Sushil Kumar Rinku, the incumbent MP from Jalandhar who defected from AAP; Hans Raj Hans, a sitting MP from Delhi now contesting from Faridkot; Dinesh Singh Babbu, a two-time MLA from Sujanpur running in Gurdaspur; and Taranjit Singh Sandhu, former Indian Ambassador to the US, vying for the prestigious Amritsar constituency.
The BJP, despite having a marginal presence so far in Punjab, has fielded the best candidates.
It is the first time since 1998 that the BJP is fighting the General Elections of its own. It has made the best pick that should make its opponents take a serious note.
The party is buoyed by the pro-Modi and pro-BJP sentiment prevailing among the urban voters, particularly after the opening of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya. Coupled with that, it has fielded some prominent faces like Preneet Kaur from Patiala and Sandhu from Amritsar.
Preneet Kaur belongs to the erstwhile royal family of Patiala.
She has been a four-time MP from the region and is liked and respected.
Sandhu from Amritsar, is the grandson of the eminent Sikh leader late Teja Singh Samudri. He does carry a lot of influence among the Sikh community.
Interestingly, in Amritsar, whenever there has been a Sikh candidate, he has defeated the non-Sikh candidate irrespective of the parties he has been contesting from.
In Ludhiana, the BJP could not have found a better candidate than Ravneet Singh Bittu, grandson of the late Beant Singh. Bittu may have a ten-year anti-incumbency against him, but the way he has taken a stand on nationalist and secular issues, he commands a lot of respect and support among a large section of people.
In Jalandhar Sushil Rinku is the sitting MP from Jalandhar. He was elected in a 2023 by-election on the AAP ticket. Having realized the sweeping support for the BJP in urban areas (Jalandhar having a substantial urban vote) he made a switchover to the BJP, which fielded him from here.
He also stands a good chance, although it may not be an easy run.
Hans Raj Hans, a popular Punjabi singer was elected from a Delhi constituency in 2019. He has been fielded from the Faridkot constituency, with a substantial rural vote base.
The BJP for sure, is going to present a tough challenge for its opponents, even when it is fighting the election of its own, independent of its long-time alliance partner, the Shiromani Akali Dal, conversely, it is going to be tougher for the Akalis to fight without the BJP.
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