Parvesh Verma thanked the party leadership, pledged to meet their expectations, and criticised Arvind Kejriwal’s handling of Covid-19.
New Delhi: After a prolonged wait, the Delhi Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) finally released its first list of candidates on Saturday for the upcoming Delhi Assembly elections. Meanwhile, the contesting political parties have begun their campaigns.
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) haVs announced its candidates for all assembly seats in Delhi, and the Congress has released three lists featuring 48 names.
Joining the fray, the BJP’s first list includes 29 candidates which ascertains that former MP Parvesh Verma would be contesting against Arvind Kejriwal from the New Delhi assembly constituency, as earlier reported by The Sunday Guardian.
Following the announcement, Verma expressed gratitude to the party’s top leadership, stating, “I thank my party’s top leadership for their trust in me. I will strive to live up to their expectations. During COVID, when Delhi needed oxygen, Arvind Kejriwal Ji was offering ‘a free bottle on every bottle.’ There are many such pending issues in Delhi, like cleaning the Yamuna and curbing pollution. Once the BJP forms government, we will address these problems.”
Notably, Verma’s candidacy has intensified the contest in the high-profile New Delhi seat, where he will face Congress’s Sandeep Dikshit, son of former Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit. The seat has been held by Arvind Kejriwal since 2013. Meanwhile, the AAP has accused Verma, the son of former Chief Minister Sahib Singh Verma, of distributing Rs 1,100 to women voters and has lodged a complaint with the Enforcement Directorate (ED). Verma has strongly denied these allegations.
Senior BJP leader and former MP Ramesh Bidhuri has been fielded as the party’s candidate from the Kalkaji assembly constituency, where he will face Congress’s Alka Lamba and Delhi Chief Minister Atishi Singh Marlena.
Speaking to the media, Bidhuri expressed gratitude to the BJP leadership for entrusting him with the task of reclaiming the Kalkaji seat. He remarked, “Delhi is suffering because of Arvind Kejriwal. The people of Kalkaji have also endured ‘aapda’ under CM Atishi.”
In addition, the BJP has nominated former NDMC Vice Chairperson Satish Upadhyay to contest from Malviya Nagar against AAP’s incumbent MLA Somnath Bharti.
Commenting on his candidacy, Upadhyay said, “The key issue is governance in Delhi. This is perhaps the only capital or state with everything but proper governance. There is corruption, alcohol, and ‘sheeshmahal,’ but no governance. Look at Delhi’s roads—can we truly call them roads of the capital? The youth need employment.”
The BJP has placed its trust in several leaders who joined the party after leaving their respective political affiliations with other parties. Among them is former Delhi Minister Kailash Gahlot, who joined the BJP in November 2024. A two-time MLA from the Najafgarh constituency, Gahlot has been fielded from Bijwasan, where he will face AAP’s Surendra Bharadwaj. Similarly, Raj Kumar Anand, who joined the BJP a few months ago, has been given a ticket from Patel Nagar to contest against his former party colleague Parvesh Ratan. Additionally, Kartar Singh Tanwar, a former AAP MLA who switched to the BJP, will contest from his previous constituency, Chhatarpur.
The BJP has also made notable changes in lineup. Gandhi Nagar MLA Anil Bajpai has been dropped in favour of former Delhi Congress chief Arvinder Singh Lovely. Lovely, who left the Congress to join the BJP ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, will contest from Gandhi Nagar against AAP’s Naveen Chaudhary. Similarly, Raj Kumar Chauhan, who joined the BJP during the Lok Sabha elections, has been fielded from Mongolpuri to contest against AAP’s Rakesh Jatav Dharamrakshak. Another former Congress MLA, Tarwinder Singh Marwah, has been chosen to contest from Jangpura against former Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia.
The saffron party has also announced candidates for several key constituencies, lke, incumbent MLA Jitendra Mahajan from Rohtas Nagar, where he will face AAP’s Sarita Singh. Similarly, Ajay Mahawar will contest against AAP’s Gaurav Sharma in Ghonda, while BJP’s Leader of Opposition in the Delhi Assembly, Vijender Gupta, has been nominated to challenge AAP’s Pradeep Mittal in the Rohini constituency. Om Prakash Sharma has been named the BJP candidate from Vishwas Nagar, where he will compete against AAP’s Deepak Singhla. In Badli, BJP has fielded Deepak Chaudhary, who will take on Congress Delhi president Devender Yadav and AAP’s Ajesh Yadav.
Following the announcement of the first list, Delhi BJP President Virendra Sachdeva stated that the 29 candidates chosen by the All India BJP are strong contenders who will serve as catalysts for change in Delhi. Delhi assembly elections are expected to take place in mid-February or March. The Election Commission of India (ECI) has yet to announce the official election dates but sources suggest an announcement will be made soon.