Om Mathur denied reports of Rajnath Singh being upset at his son being overlooked in earlier elections
Om Mathur, the BJP leader in charge of Uttar Pradesh, has defended the party's decision to field a number of sons and daughters of senior leaders for the assembly elections in the state, stressing that only those who deserve to be candidates have been given ticket. Union minister Rajnath Singh's son Pankaj Singh, the BJP's candidate from Noida, is "200 per cent eligible," Mr Mathur said.
After its multiple attacks on rivals like the Samajwadi Party and Congress for what it calls their "dynastic politics," questions have been raised over the BJP's claim to being a party with a difference, given the number of relatives it is fielding in UP. This, despite Prime Minister Narendra Modi's firm no to family members of leaders contesting elections.
Mr Mathur told NDTV in an exclusive interview that reports of Rajnath Singh being upset at his son being overlooked as a BJP candidate in earlier elections were untrue. "It is absolutely wrong to say that Rajnath Singh was angry and put pressure for a ticket for Pankaj Singh. I have seen Pankaj working for the party for 15 years now, he is an office-bearer. Pankaj Singh is 200% eligible to get a BJP ticket," the senior leader said.
As this reporter reeled off names of other sons and daughters that the BJP has announced as candidates in its first two UP lists - including the children and grandchildren of BJP leaders Lalji Tandon, Hukum Singh And Kalyan Singh - Mr Mathur said, "All relatives given BJP tickets have worked for years - Lalji Tandon's son Gopal is a sitting lawmaker and has been fielded again."
The party also faces protests against new imports in the BJP being chosen as candidates over people who have worked in the party for years.
Mr Mathur said the BJP has only allotted about 30 to 40 seats to those who have recently joined the party, roughly 10 per cent of the total seats announced, he said.
Rita Bahuguna Joshi, who joined the BJP only three months ago after 24 years in the Congress, features in the list of 155 candidates declared yesterday, as does Brijesh Pathak, who recently joined the BJP after quitting Mayawati's Bahujan Samaj Party. Both will contest prestigious constituencies in state capital Lucknow.
About two dozen people who joined the party only recently had featured in the first list of 149 too, sparking protests. "Outsiders are being given tickets only after pacifying BJP workers," insisted Mr Mathur.