New Delhi, Nov 06: Apparently not wanting to project a chief ministerial candidate, BJP today did not name any of its four top leaders in Chhattisgarh, including hopefuls to the top post Dilip Singh Judev and Raman Singh in the list of 72 candidates approved by the party`s Central Election Committee. "As part of our strategy, we are not fielding any of the four leaders, Raman Singh, former Union minister and state unit president, Judev and Ramesh Bains, both Union ministers, and Karuna Shukla in the assembly elections," party spokesman Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi told reporters here. Among the names of the candidates announced today is that of the leader of the opposition in Chhattisgarh Assembly, Nand Kumar Sai from Tapkara (ST).
Shukla, who is a member of the outgoing assembly and niece of Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, has decided to campaign for the party and not contest the polls.

Naqvi and Raman Singh ruled out fielding a common opposition candidate against Chief Minister Ajit Jogi and also any alliance with Nationalist Congress Party.

"There has been no discussion on the fielding of a common candidate against Jogi nor having an alliance with NCP," Singh said. Of the 72 candidates for the 90-member assembly finalised by the party`s Central Election Committee at the end of three-day meeting chaired by party president M Venkaiah Naidu at the residence of Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, nine belong to scheduled castes, 28 scheduled tribes, 21 sitting MLAs and five women.

Bureau Report