New Delhi: After several meetings in last 72 hours, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) finally came up with a three-page list of 68 candidates on Wednesday afternoon for the impending Himachal Pradesh Assembly polls.
Several former state ministers' names have been re-considered. The former chief minister Prem Kumar Dhumal will be contesting from Sujanpur instead of Hamirpur, which he currently represents and the party state president Satpal Singh Sati will contest from Una.
Former state health and family welfare minister Rajeev Bindal and former state horticulture minister Narinder Bragta will also contest the elections from Nahan and Jubbal-Kotkhai respectively.
Two-time CM Dhumal's and Union Health Minister Jay Prakash Nadda's names are doing the round for the chief ministerial post. However, the party preferred its 'Lotus' symbol alone instead of projecting a face.
On Monday, the Millennium Post reported that during Saturday's Central Election Committee meeting, Prime Minister Narendra Modi directed the state leadership and all CEC members to consider 10-15 per cent women candidates in the final list and this could be a reason for the delay.
A few unheard names have been accommodated. Reeta Dhiman from Indora (SC), Kamlesh Kumari from Bhoranj (SC), Viajy Jyoti Sain from Kasumpti and Shashi Bala from Rohru have found party tickets.
Apart from them, BJP Mahila Mircha President Sushree Indu Gouswamy's name has been considered from Palampur, home town of the former Chief Minister Shanta Kuamr. However, Kumar is said to have pushed former MLA Praveen Sharma's name. Sharma, a former social justice and empowerment minister of the state will also contest elections from Shahpur.
The nomination filing process of all parties started from the eve of Diwali. The single-phase election will be held on November 9, while the counting will take place on December 18. The ruling Congress holds 36 seats in the Assembly whereas BJP has 26. The tenure of the 68-member House will end in January 2018.