Bharatiya Janata Party is not contesting the Delhi assembly elections with no face, in fact from Haryana to Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh to Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh, the BJP has been contesting assembly elections without deciding on a candidate. And it has been successful. But this time Aam Aadmi Party is deciding BJP’s CM candidate every day. Aam Aadmi Party leader and Chief Minister Atishi, who is contesting as an MLA from Kalkaji, on Friday claimed that the Bharatiya Janata Party is going to make its Kalkaji, former MP Ramesh Budhuri, the chief minister. Earlier there was also noise about Parvesh Verma’s name. Aam Aadmi Party is promoting the name of Ramesh Budhuri for the purpose, now this name has already been discussed as the Chief Minister, now it is to be seen whether there is any possibility of him becoming the Chief Minister or not. However, a person who wants to get a constitutional post in the Bharatiya Janata Party himself has no expectation or knowledge about it.
Who is Ramesh Bidhuri’s competition?
Although it cannot be said about Ramesh Budhuri whether he can be made the Chief Minister or not, it cannot be said whose name will be drawn in the lottery in the Bharatiya Janata Party. Ramesh Bidhuri belongs to the OBC community. If he defeats the CM and reaches the Delhi assembly, then obviously he can get a big post. That position can also be that of the Chief Minister, it cannot be denied. In the Delhi BJP, the names of Manoj Tiwari, Meenakshi Lekhi, Parvesh Verma and Bansuri Swaraj are among the contenders for the post of Chief Minister. But Bidhuri’s top rivals are Parvesh Verma and Bansuri Swaraj. Parvesh Verma is fighting a strong man like former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on the New Delhi seat. Congress candidate Sandeep Dikshit, son of former Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit, is also contesting for this seat. Obviously, the competition here is tough.
It is possible that Aam Aadmi Party may lose Delhi elections but Arvind Kejriwal may win his New Delhi seat. Thus Parvesh Verma’s name is cut for the Chief Minister. Secondly, Bansuri Swaraj’s being a Brahmin might be negative for him. BJP has made two Brahmin leaders as CM in a row. The BJP has produced two Brahmin chief ministers in the form of Bhajanlal Sharma in Rajasthan and Devendra Fadnavis in Maharashtra. Obviously, making a Brahmin chief minister for the third time could damage the party’s pro-OBC image. Thus, if Ramesh Bidhuri’s name is stamped, then his caste is Gurjar. The Gujjar vote is very special for Delhi NCR.
BJP needs people like Bidhuri and Kapil Mishra to take on Arvind Kejriwal.
Now the question arises why BJP will make a high profile leader like Ramesh Budhuri as Chief Minister. Obviously, the Bharatiya Janata Party has been a party of disciplined workers. The identity of the party is its behavior and face. But Bharatiya Janata Party has realized that attitude, character and face alone cannot bring power. That too when a leader like Arvind Kejriwal is in front.
Bharatiya Janata Party has lost three consecutive assembly elections in Delhi. If he wins for the fourth time, it will obviously be a big win for him, the BJP will want to hold on to power in Delhi for at least 15 years. It will require people who will take the field against the Aam Aadmi Party and give them an answer in their language. Kapil Mishra is also respected in the BJP because just as he used to be aggressive against Prime Minister Narendra Modi, after leaving the Aam Aadmi Party, he seems to be more aggressive against Arvind Kejriwal.
This is the reason why BJP has given Kapil Mishra a seat where his victory can be assured, if BJP had fielded its old candidate Mohan Singh Bisht, he would have won. But this time, BJP is not contesting the election on the basis of winning only. She wants to build a team of people in Delhi who will be more active than the Aam Aadmi Party and do aggressive politics.
