Udit Raj targets BJP over denial of ticket (2nd Lead)

Denied a ticket, BJP Lok Sabha member Udit Raj on Tuesday attacked the party, saying candidates are being chosen on the basis of "some inscrutable internal standards" while ignoring the hard work of aspirants.

A "hurt" Dalit leader, who had merged his Indian Justice Party with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in 2014, expressed his anguish after he was dropped as a candidate for the May 12 polls and replaced by Punjabi singer Hans Raj Hans for the North West Delhi Lok Sabha seat.

"Entire India thinks that BJP offers tickets based on hard work, honesty and capability. It appears this is not the truth. The decision to offer the ticket or deny it is based on some inscrutable internal standards," the 58-year-old said in a statement.

A former Indian Revenue Service officer, Udit Raj resigned from service and formed the Indian Justice Party in 2003. He contested the 2014 election on a BJP ticket and won.

He said he felt "deeply hurt" that he was not even given a chance to defend himself.

"The entire experience of the ticket denial was not graceful. I was not taken into confidence and that left me feel like an orphan today," Udit Raj said.

He said he realised that many smaller regional parties have benefited more by remaining Independent.

The MP said a number of things came to his mind about why he was denied a BJP ticket.

He said he wondered if it was his fault that he was a senior Dalit leader. "Doesn't the BJP want a leader who has been chosen by Dalits themselves?"

He added: "In the presence of PM Modi, I had raised a question in Parliament: is Supreme Court against Dalits and poor? Was it my fault to speak on their behalf?"

He also asked if taking out a rally against Supreme Court for sealing was an error.

"Are these the reasons for ticket denial? I deeply regret that BJP is hurting me," he said.

"All BJP workers know that the party engaged four agencies for a performance survey of MPs. I topped in all surveys," Udit Raj claimed.

"When these endorse my performance and capability, then why was ticket denied to me? What is the criteria?" he said.

Udit Raj had removed the prefix "Chowkidar" from his Twitter handle but it was later restored.

Sources close to him said the prefix was restored "mistakenly" by a staff member and he is likely to quit the BJP in the next few days and join an opposition party.

--IANS

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