Having tried and tested the concept in Uttar Pradesh, Mayawati's Bahujan Samaj Party is now putting 'social engineering' to use in New Delhi by selecting over one-third candidates from upper castes for the coming Assembly elections.
The BSP, taking a lead in announcing candidates for the elections, had earlier come out with a list of 38 nominees in March, following it on Sunday with another 22 names.
Out of the 60 candidates whose names have been announced so far, 22 belong to upper castes.
A total of 13 candidates are Dalits, who have made it to the two lists, while 20 others are from the backward classes. Five of the candidates are Muslims. Three women also figure in the two lists.
Buoyed by the substantial increase in its number of seats in the municipal elections held in 2007, the BSP plans to contest from all 70 constituencies in Delhi.
The party is fielding three sitting municipal councilors, taking into account their popularity in their areas, BSP Delhi unit President Jogram Bhatti, the party candidate from Karawal Nagar constituency, told PTI.
He said the candidates for the remaining ten seats will be announced later in May.
"We have announced the candidates much ahead of other parties and this will help us to acquaint ourselves with the constituency. We are going to give other parties a run for their money," Bhatti said.
