BJP Taking Feedback From Councilors On Delhi Lawmakers' Performance

As part of its latest exercise ahead of the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has been meeting BJP councilors in Delhi and getting feedback from the ground level on how the lawmakers have performed in the last five years. 

"Nirmala ji is asking everyone if they are aware of the good work done by the Government and the MPs. A lot of times, the councilors are so caught up in their own jobs that they think all that is being done is good for the people, good for the country. But they need to go into the specifics. Nirmala ji is just trying to gauge how much they know," said Manoj Tiwari, the Chief of Delhi BJP.

People's Pulse, the internal party survey on sitting lawmakers and other possible candidates, has thrown up some interesting results across the constituencies, according to sources. 

In 2014, the BJP swept all seven Lok Sabha seats in Delhi and the party's vote share was close to 46 per cent. The BJP hopes to improve the vote share, especially in the areas they haven't done well. 

According to a source, the Delhi BJP has ranked around 13,500 polling booths into A, B, C, D categories on the basis of the votes polled in previous elections.

The booths where the BJP has never won have been put under D.

This time, the BJP is open to new applicants, especially in areas they have never won.

Vijender Gupta, the Leader of the Opposition in Delhi Assembly says, "It is a democratic process, everyone's view is taken before picking candidates. The party tries to take everyone into confidence and build consensus, and that is how each one's role gets defined."

While the final decision on the candidates will be taken by BJP's parliamentary board, sources say the Delhi BJP office has so far received about 25 applications from former MPs, MLAs, municipal councilors and leaders of frontal organisations. Some others have applied to the national office as well, and the leadership has shortlisted a few names.