After clean sweep, focus shifts to CM contenders
NEW DELHI: After the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) dominant performance in Uttar Pradesh, the focus has now shifted on who will take the top job in the country’s most populous state.
The saffron party’s parliamentary board is expected to meet on Sunday to discuss who could be UP’s next chief minister from the following contenders.
MANOJ SINHA
The 57-year-old leader is the telecom minister in PM Modi’s government. A two-time parliamentarian, he represents the Ghazipur Lok Sabha seat from eastern UP. An upper caste Bhumihar leader, Sinha is considered close to Modi and manages the PM’s Varanasi constituency.
KESHAV PRASAD MAURYA
The 47-year-old MP comes from a backward community. He currently heads BJP in UP and was associated with the VHP during the Ram Temple movement in the 1990s. He was made the president of BJP’s state unit with an aim to woo non-Yadav OBCs.
RAJNATH SINGH
India’s home minister, the 65-year-old Thakur leader was the last BJP chief minister in UP. He is the senior-most BJP leader from the state and is considered close to the RSS.
MAHESH SHARMA
Sharma is a first-time member of the Lok Sabha and is currently the tourism minister in Modi’s cabinet. A practising doctor who owns the Kailash Hospital in Noida, Sharma has been a member of the UP assembly. He is considered close to the RSS.
DINESH SHARMA
The 53-year-old leader was first elected the mayor of Lucknow in 2008. He teaches at the Lucknow University and is currently the national vice-president of the BJP. He is considered close to BJP president Amit Shah.
While the five leaders are considered the front runners in the CM race, Modi is known to spring surprises. It is possible that he might pick a candidate few would have considered a contender.