On Sunday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi conducted an extensive cabinet meeting with his ministers in Sushma Swaraj Bhavan, located in Chanakyapuri, New Delhi. The meeting, starting at 10 AM, spanned until 9:30 PM. He advised his ministers to refrain from contentious statements and be cautious when speaking. Emphasizing thoughtful speech, the Prime Minister directed his ministers to focus on government plans rather than engaging in controversy. He also mentioned his desire for Rajya Sabha members within his cabinet to consider contesting in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.
It's noteworthy that the first list of 195 Lok Sabha candidates released by BJP includes 7 names who are currently Rajya Sabha MPs and ministers in the Modi government. Prominent among them are Jyotiraditya Scindia contesting from Guna in Madhya Pradesh, Mansukh Mandaviya from Porbandar in Gujarat, and many others preparing to run in the Lok Sabha elections.
'June Budget to Reflect a Developed India'
In the cabinet meeting, PM Modi emphasized that the upcoming June budget should give a glimpse of a developed India. Five presentations on how India can become a developed country by 2047 were shown to the PM by the secretaries. Ministers Ashwini Vaishnaw, Hardeep Singh Puri, Kiren Rijiju, Arjun Meghwal, and Piyush Goyal shared their inputs. BJP plans to center its Lok Sabha campaign on the performance of the central government and its development plans discussed during the cabinet meeting.
First BJP List Includes 34 Central Ministers
According to BJP's first list, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will contest from Varanasi for the third time, with Home Minister Amit Shah from Gandhinagar and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh running from Lucknow. The list also includes former Chief Ministers Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Sarbananda Sonowal, and Biplab Kumar Deb. Significantly, 33 current MPs, including some prominent faces, have been denied tickets by the BJP. For instance, Ministers Meenakshi Lekhi and Harsh Vardhan are not fielded from their respective constituencies of New Delhi and Chandni Chowk.
Tickets Revoked for Sadhvi Pragya, Bidhuri, Harsh Vardhan, Lekhi
One more significant name whose ticket has been revoked is the current MP from Bhopal, Sadhvi Pragya Thakur. Alok Sharma replaces her for the Bhopal constituency. Similarly, Ramesh Bidhuri and Parvesh Sahib Singh Verma have been replaced by Ramvir Singh Bidhuri and Kamaljeet Sehrawat for the South Delhi and West Delhi seats, respectively. Out of the 195 seats listed, BJP had won 155 in the 2019 elections. Prime Minister Modi has set an ambitious goal for BJP to secure at least 370 seats on its own and over 400 seats for the NDA in this Lok Sabha election.
