As India’s general election approaches, fake lists announcing political party candidates have emerged on cue.
A ‘candidates list’ announcing 24 candidates shortlisted by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to contest from allotted Parliamentary constituencies surfaced on social media on Friday, 8 March.
‘Jaitley from Pilibhit, Smriti Irani from Amethi’
This fake list has dropped a day before the Election Commission is expected to release the dates for the general elections. Listing 24 names, it claims that Union Minister Arun Jaitley will contest from Pilibhit, a constituency currently held by BJP’s Union Minister Maneka Gandhi; Smriti Irani will contest from Amethi; Hema Malini from Fatehpur Sikri; and Murli Manohar Joshi from Sultanpur.
The list was mistaken for being real by many on Facebook and Twitter.
Adding to the confusion, The Tribune reported on the list saying that Jaitley’s name was doing the rounds for Pilibhit seat ahead of BJP meeting. The report by The Tribune also refers to the names mentioned in the above reported list.
“The other names in the “list of 24 names” doing the rounds in the BJP circles are that of state UP ministers Srikant Sharma for Mathura instead of actress-turned-politician Hema Malini, who is said to be considered for Fatehpur Sikri and SP Singh Baghel from Firozabad. Veteran Murli Manohar Joshi is said to be the likely candidate for Sultanpur instead of sitting MP Varun Gandhi, Maneka Gandhi’s son and Congress chief Rahul Gandhi’s cousin,” the article reads.
Lifting the names and respective Parliamentary constituencies straight from the list, the article has not published a confirmation from official spokesperson of the BJP.
Has BJP Really Announced a List?
The Quint’s WebQoof reached out to one of the party’s official spokespersons, who confirmed that no such list has been released by the party.
One of BJP’s official spokespersons, requesting anonymity, told The Quint that it is impossible for such a decision to be announced as no list has been prepared by the BJP.
“No list has been announced. There are several such fake lists doing rounds on social media platforms. These fake lists have also targeted Congress, not just BJP. However, this is ridiculous as the party has not released any list,” the spokesperson said, confirming that the list is fake.
Moreover, none of the BJP handles have tweeted the picture, seeming to corroborate the spokespersons’ denials.
Several senior journalists have also tweeted that such a list circulating on social media is fake as the BJP is expected to meet on Friday, 8 March for its parliamentary board meeting.
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