The ruling party Janata Dal-United in Bihar on Saturday released its first list of 15 candidates for Bihar and four other States fielding former bureaucrat KP Ramaiah from Sasaram reserved seat against lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar.
The contest in Sasaram is expected to be a triangular one as the BJP has fielded Sanjay Paswan from the seat. The JD(U) declared Bihar Assembly Speaker Uday Narain Chaudhury as party’s candidate for Jamui reserved constituency where Chirag Paswan, son of lJP chief Ram Vilas Paswan is in the fray. While the lJP has alliance with the BJP, the RJD is in alliance with the Congress in Bihar.
The party fielded its Jharkhand unit chief Jaleshwar Mahato from Giridih and Mahesh Yadav from Chatra in Jharkhand. It also declared candidates for four seats in Narendra Modi-ruled Gujarat and one each in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. While releasing the list in Delhi, party president Sharad Yadav named himself from Madhepura, sitting party MP Kaushalendra Kumar from Nalanda, Baghi Kumar Verma from Aurangabad, Mahabali Singh from Karakat, Jeetan Ram Manjhi from Gaya and Kaushal Yadav from Nawada. Sharad Yadav said that list of other candidates would be released soon and denied that there was any rebellion in the party over ticket distribution.
State JD(U) president Bashistha Narayan Singh claimed that tickets were given to all deserving candidates and the whole party is united over the ticket distribution. Among six lok Saba seats of Bihar for which the party has declared candidates, sitting MP Mabhali Singh has been re-nominated from Karakat lok Sabha seat. Singh is the only sitting MP among the candidates declared so far.
The party declared the candidature of Baagi Kumar Verma from Aurangabad, where its sitting MP Sushil Kumar is now contesting on BJP ticket while the Congress has fielded former MP Nikhil Kumar, who had quit as Kerala Governor recently to fight the lok Sabha polls. Kaushal Yadav has been fielded from Nawada. Sasaram, Karakat, Aurangabad, Gaya, Nawada and Jamui constituencies will go for polls on April 10.
In Gujarat, Jadav Ambalala Kanabhai is candidate from Baroda, Vasav A Prafullbhai from Chhota Udaypur (reserved), Vasava Jagat Singh from Bardoli, Vasava Kioshore Bhati Chhotu Bhai from Soorat and Shailesh Ji Patel from Valsad in Gujarat. Narain Maida is party candidate from Ratlam in Madhya Pradesh and Bhanji bhai from Banswada in Rajasthan.