BJP's first candidates list: In UP, suspense remains over seats of Varun, Maneka, Brij Bhushan

BJP sources said that instead of renominating Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, his son Prateek Bhsuhan Singh could get the ticket this time.

Lucknow: BJP's first list of 51 candidates from the electorally crucial state of Uttar Pradesh does not include several important seats including Pilibhit, Sultanpur, Kaiserganj, Raebareli, Mainpuri and few others.

Pilibhit Lok Sabha seat is currently represented by Varun Gandhi while his mother and former Union Minister Maneka Gandhi is the sitting MP from Sultanpur Lok Sabha seat. 

Controversial BJP leader and 'muscleman' Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, the former president of Wrestling Federation of India, who faced allegations of sexual exploitation by some female wrestlers, was MP from Kaiserganj seat.

According to the state BJP sources here, Varun, who had been quite vocal against the party leadership and the UP government over issues concerning the farmers, might not be renominated this time. There were speculations that Varun might contest from Amethi, a constituency once represented by his father Sanjay Gandhi, as an independent candidate backed by the opposition I.N.D.I.A alliance. Neither the Congress nor the Samajwadi Party (SP), however, commented on the speculation.

BJP sources also said that instead of renominating Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, his son Prateek Bhsuhan Singh could get the ticket this time. The BJP leaders here also, preferring anonymity, said that it would not be 'easy' to act against the firebrand leader, who was known to speak his mind even if it was against the party leadership or the BJP government in the state.

He had sharply criticised his own government, when floods had hit several eastern and central districts in the state, including Gonda, Bahraich, Ayodhya and some others.

''The people have been left on the mercy of the god,'' he had then remarked, criticising the state government for not being able to provide succor to the flood affected people. Sources said that the saffron party would wait for the Congress to declare its candidate from its bastion of Raebareli before announcing its own nominee from there. There are speculations that Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra might contest from there.

Similarly Mainpuri is another LS seat which the BJP has found hard to win. SP president Akhilesh Yadav's wife Dimple Yadav, who was the sitting MP from there, would once again contest from the SP stronghold. 

BJP was also finding it difficult to find strong candidates to be fielded from the SP strongholds of Firozabad, Prayagraj and Badaun. .