The Congress announced the name of Pankaj Sanghvi who had lost to BJP’s Sumitra Mahajan in 1998.
Sanghvi had contested his first poll as a corproator in 1983. He was fielded against Mahajan in 1998 and lost to her by over 49,000 votes. Sanghvi also had contested for the Indore mayor in 2009 but had lost to BJP’s senior leader Krishna Murari Moghe by barely 4,000 votes.
He could not end his losing streak in 2013 when he was named as Congress candidate from assembly no 5 in Indore but lost narrowly to BJP candidate Mahendra Hardia by 12 000 votes.
Like Bhopal, Indore is also another saffron citadel in MP which the party hasn’t lost since 1989.
However the party this time had few other plans as sitting MP and the LS speaker Sumitra Mahajn’s ticket is yet to be announced. An upset Mahajan had recently announced not to contest poll if the party was in any sort of dilemma over her candidature.
Mahajan had reached New Delhi on Sunday and also met senior peaty leaders and reportedly forwarded her chosen of names if her named wasn’t being considered for the seat.
The BJP is also expected to name its candidate in a day or two. If Mahajan is snubbed by the party, Mayor Malini Gaud is expected to be the nominee. A woman candidate and an MLA, Gaud represents a strong political family in Indore and has earned sizable accolade for her contrition in Indore’s number’s distinction as cleanest city of India.
