The eve of the partys first central election committee meeting, according to sources. Home Minister Amit Shah and BJP President J.P. Nadda held marathon deliberations with leaders from over 14 states and union territories amid speculation that a substantial number of incumbents could be benched.Two-termers are considered to be particularly vulnerable, with the party keen to ward off the risk of local incumbency hindering its plans to leverage PM Modis popularity to score its biggest LS win, said one party source.The number of state units called for deliberations has reinforced indications that the leadership, building on recent state election victories, may announce its first candidate list soon. Party circles buzzed that the list, likely to be unveiled a day after the CEC meeting including Modi, other parliamentary board members and senior state leaders, could contain as many as 200 names. BJP recently held informal meetings with leaders from Uttar Pradesh and other key states. Additionally, central office-bearers have completed reviewing states where the party expects significant gains.The review, comprising on-the-spot assessments, local feedback and internal survey findings, involved weighing the prospects of previous winners against potential replacements.Core group members from Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Delhi, Goa, Tripura, Arunachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Haryana, Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Jammu & Kashmir, Assam, Uttarakhand, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, and Daman and Diu brainstormed with Shah, Nadda and general secretary B.L. Santhosh.Sources said former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, present for the MP review, is among likely candidates from a prominent seat. Additionally, Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia and senior member Kailash Vijayvargiya may also be fielded.For Delhis seven seats, sources said the election committee submitted 25-30 names to the national leadership. Along with sitting MP Meenakshi Lekhi, potential New Delhi seat candidates included Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar, Housing Minister Hardeep Singh Puri and late leader Sushma Swarajs daughter Bansuri, a senior Delhi BJP official said.The list of probables was discussed in a meeting of national leaders, including Nadda, Shah and state president Virendra Sachdeva, at the party headquarters, the official stated.Apart from East Delhi MP Gautam Gambhir and North West Delhi MP Han Raj Hans, the remaining five Delhi MPs - Ramesh Bidhuri (South Delhi), Lekhi (New Delhi), Harsh Vardhan (Chandni Chowk), Manoj Tiwari (North East Delhi) and Parvesh Verma (West Delhi) - are seeking second consecutive terms.
