New Delhi: The BJP came up with the name of Patidar leader Hasmukh S Patel as the party candidate from the esteemed Ahmedabad East parliamentary constituency by swapping Paresh Rawal. In the state, Patel is representing Amraiwadi assembly division. His name was announced late on Wdnesday by the BJP CEC Secretary J P Nadda.
The actor turned politician had last week announced that even though he is completely loyal to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he will not be contesting the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. The veteran acton Paresh Rawal had on March 23rd tweeted, “I, however, remain a loyal member of BJP and a staunch supporter of Narendra Modi. I will not fight even if I get the ticket and I have steadfastly maintained in all my statements and interviews etc that I am not interested in political career. Hope this clears the fog."
There was a speculation regarding Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman fielding from Ahmedabad East. However, all the possibility was ruled out after Ms Sitharaman announced that she will not be contesting the polls.
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In the past, the senior BJP leader Harin Pathak had represented Ahmedabad East for around seven times. This year poll in Ahmedabad East will be quite engrossing as it will be Patidar vs Patidar in Ahemedabad. BJP rival Congress has named Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti convener Geeta Patel for the polls.
In the Lok Sabha Election 2017, BJP had established its reign on most of the parliamentary constituency including, Nikol, Gandhinagar South, Naroda, Vatva, Dehgam and Thakkarnagar. Whereas, Congress pocketed the assembly seats of Bapunagar only.