New Delhi: Ahead of Haryana Assembly elections, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has taken strict action against its rebel leaders. The party on Sunday expelled eight leaders who were involved in anti-party activities.
These leaders, who decided to contest the elections against the official BJP candidates, have been removed from the party for six years.
Ranjit Singh Chautala among 8 expelled leaders
In a statement, BJP said that among the eight expelled leaders is Ranjit Singh Chautala, a minister in the caretaker government of Chief Minister Naib Saini. The party has also removed former minister Bachchan Singh Arya and Devendra Kadian, who is running as an independent candidate from the Ganaur Assembly seat.
Earlier, Congress had expelled 24 rebel leaders who had similarly contested elections after rebelling against the party’s official candidates.
Other leaders expelled from BJP
Other leaders expelled from the BJP include Jilaram Sharma from Assandh, Bachchan Singh Arya from Safidon, Sandeep Garg from Ladwa, Naveen Goyal from Gurugram, Radha Ahlawat from Meham, and Kehar Singh Rawat from Hathin. All these leaders have been expelled for six years due to their decision to run as independent candidates against BJP’s official nominees.
BJP had previously announced a list of 67 candidates for the Haryana Assembly elections. However, Ranjit Singh Chautala, who was hoping for a ticket, was left out. Instead, Shishpal Kamboj was made the BJP candidate for the Rania Assembly seat. Upset with this decision, Chautala announced that he would contest as an independent candidate.
Similarly, Devendra Kadian, chairman of Mannat Group Hotels, was seeking a ticket from the Ganaur Assembly seat, but the BJP chose Devendra Kaushik instead. In protest, Kadian decided to contest independently from Ganaur.
In Meham, Radha Ahlawat also chose to run as an independent after being denied a ticket. Her husband, Shamsher Kharkada, had switched to the BJP from the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) and requested a ticket for his wife, but the party chose former Indian Kabaddi team captain Deepak Hooda as its candidate, leading to discontent.
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