Key Points
New Delhi:One in four candidates of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in this Lok Sabha election is a defector while a majority of them switched their allegiance from the Congress, ThePrints analysis of the background of 417 candidates has found...
Out of these 417, 116 or 28 percent came from other parties..
Ever since the party attempted to expand its reach and political footprint, which I would say was since the early 2000s, there was a clear attempt to reach out to sections and leaders who were not necessarily associated with their core agenda, says Karnataka-based political scientist and Jain University pro vice-chancellor Sandeep Shastri...
But author-columnist Sudha Pai, a former professor of Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), says since most of the members are still from within the BJP, it wont have a long term impact unless the leadership or the party weakens..
Praveen Kumar Nishad, son of NISHAD party president Sanjay Nishad, is contesting on the BJP symbol in Uttar Pradeshs Sant Kabir Nagar..
