After facing flak for its initial list of 44 candidates for the upcoming Jammu and Kashmir Assembly polls, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has re-released an amended list with just 15 candidates.
The revisions come amid internal party discussions and feedback from local leaders.
Sources have said the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh had objections to some of the names proposed, saying the choices were not appropriate, which set off discussions internally in the party.
Candidates in the new list include Engineer Syed Showkat Gayoor Andrabi from Pampore, Arshid Bhat from Rajpora, Javed Ahmad Qadri for Shopian, and Mohd. Rafiq Wani for Anantnag West.
Adv. Syed Wazahat is contesting from Anantnag, Sofi Yousuf from Srigufwara–Bijbehra, while Veer Saraf is contesting from Shangus–Anantnag East.
Inderwal in the Kishtwar district will be represented by Tariq Keen, Shagun Parihar will contest from Kishtwar, Sunil Sharma from Padder–Nagseni.
In Doda, the contestants are Gajay Singh Rana and Daleep Singh Parihar from Bhadarwah, while Doda West will be represented by Shakti Raj Parihar.
The nominees from Ramban are Rakesh Thakur and from Salim Bhat (Banihal).
Earlier on Monday The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) released its first list of 44 candidates for the upcoming Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections.
The candidates’ names in the first list included Arshid Bhat for Rajpora, Javed Ahmad Qadri for Shopian, Mohd Rafiq Wani for Anantnag West, Sofi Yousuf for Srigufwara-Bijbehara, Rakesh Thakur for Ramban, Salim Bhat for Banihal, and Rohit Dubey for Shri Mata Vaishno Devi.
Additionally, Advocate Syed Wajahat was contesting for the Anantnag seat, Shagun Parihar for Kishtwar, and Gajay Singh Rana for Doda.
The decision was made after a meeting of the BJP Central Election Committee on Sunday presided over by Union Minister JP Nadda.
Others who attended included Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, and other committee members.
The committee had cleared the party's candidate list for the J&K Assembly Election 2024.
Of the total 90 members being elected to the J&K Legislative Assembly, elections will be held in three phases — September 18, September 25, and October 1.
Votes will be counted on October 4. This election is also taking place for the first time since the abrogation of Article 370 and the erstwhile state's bifurcation into two Union Territories in 2019.
Assembly elections were last held in 2014.
Since 2018, the state has been under the rule of a Governor, and the Assembly was dissolved by the then-Governor Satya Pal Malik.
As per recent indications by the Central government, the statehood of Jammu and Kashmir might again be restored after the elections are over.
The Centre revoked Article 370 on August 5, 2019, uniting Jammu and Kashmir and dividing it into two Union Territories: J-K and Ladakh.
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