BJP Releases Third List of 29 Candidates for Jammu and Kashmir Assembly Elections

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Tuesday announced its third list of 29 candidates for the upcoming Jammu and Kashmir assembly elections. The list includes 10 candidates for the second phase, scheduled for September 25, and 19 for the third phase, set for October 1. These elections, which will occur in three phases beginning on September 18, will conclude with vote counting on October 4.

Key candidates from the list include Ashok Bhat for Habbakadal, Mohammad Akram Choudhary for Gulabgarh, and Kuldeep Raj Dubey for Reasi. The party also named Baldev Raj Sharma for the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi seat and Thakur Randhir Singh for Kalakote-Sunderbani. Other notable candidates are Choudhary Zulfikar Ali for Budhal and Pawan Gupta for Udhampur West.

The release of the list follows internal tension within the party, with some BJP workers threatening to rebel after senior leaders like former deputy chief minister Nirmal Singh were dropped from the candidate lineup. Despite the discontent, the party is moving forward with its strategy to secure a strong position in the upcoming polls.