Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired a late-night Central Election Committee (CEC) meet of the BJP to finalise the first list of candidates for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. The meeting, which began around 10.30 pm, lasted for more than four hours.
The meeting was attended by leaders such as BJP National President JP Nadda, Union Ministers Amit Shah and Rajnath Singh.
Key state leaders, including Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadndavis, Gujarat CM Bhupendra Patel, Madhya Pradesh CM Mohan Yadav, Chhattisgarh CM Vishnu Deo Sai, Uttarakhand CM Pushkar Singh Dhami and Goa CM Pramod Sawant, were also present in the meeting.
The BJP plans to release its first list before the Election Commission announces dates for the Lok Sabha polls, which are likely to take place in April-May.
According to sources, the BJP would likely announce its candidates on "weak seats" in Uttar Pradesh before the Election Commission releases dates for the Lok Sabha elections.
The BJP's poll candidate lists have often been as significant for those missing out as for the new faces given a chance and all eyes will be on whether it drops some well-known names or does some fresh experiment in selecting its nominees.
Last week, top BJP leaders, including Union Home Minister Amit Shah, party chief JP Nadda, and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath held a meeting to discuss the "weak seats" on which the party may face a stiff electoral challenge.
