BJP Releases 5th List Of 111 Candidates, Arun Govil, Kangana Ranaut, Naveen Jindal Among Nominees

 Lok Sabha Election 2024: The BJP in its fifth list named actors Arun Govil, Kangana Ranaut, and ex-Congress MP Naveen Jindal along with several senior leaders and Union Ministers.

ABP | 25 Mar 2024 : The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) announced the names of 111 additional Lok Sabha poll candidates on Sunday, revealing significant changes in its roster. Among the prominent names are actor Kangana Ranaut and industrialist Naveen Jindal, who joined the party today. Arun Govil, renowned for his portrayal of Ram in the TV serial Ramayan, has been fielded from the Meerut Lok Sabha seat.

The party has opted to drop several incumbents, including Union ministers Ashwini Kumar Choubey and V K Singh, and MP Varun Gandhi, while introducing new faces and notable personalities.

Union minister Dharmendra Pradhan will contest from Sambalpur, while the party's spokesperson Sambit Patra will attempt to secure a victory from Puri. Additionally, actors Kangana Ranaut and Arun Govil have been fielded by the BJP.

Among the notable omissions, former Union minister Anantkumar Hegde has been dropped, as well as nearly 37 incumbent MPs. Notably, Kerala BJP president K Surendra will contest from Wayanad, challenging incumbent MP Rahul Gandhi.

The BJP has named Rekha Patra, identified as a victim of the Sadeshkhali incident, as a candidate from West Bengal's Basirhat constituency. Another notable addition is former Calcutta High Court judge Abhijit Gangopadhyay from Tamluk. Notably, Dilip Ghosh, the MP from Medinipur, has been shifted to Bardhaman–Durgapur, replacing the incumbent S S Ahluwalia.

In Bihar, Union minister Giriraj Singh has been renominated from Begusarai, and former Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad from Patna Sahib.

In Uttar Pradesh, the BJP announced 13 more candidates, including the replacement of Varun Gandhi with Jitin Prasada in Pilibhit. Meanwhile, veteran actor Arun Govil has been preferred over seasoned parliamentarian Rajendra Agrawal in Meerut.

Several new entrants featured in the list, including Naveen Jindal, Ranjit Chautala, and Varaprasad Rao, who joined the BJP on Sunday. Additionally, Sita Soren, sister-in-law of former Jharkhand chief minister Hemant Soren, will contest from Dumka.

Former Karnataka chief minister Jagadish Shettar, who recently rejoined the BJP after a brief stint with the Congress, will contest from Belgaum.