AAP releases fifth list of candidates; Khopade to take on Supriya Sule

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Wednesday released its fifth list of 56 candidates for the Lok Sabha elections, which include eight from Bihar and nine from Uttar Pradesh.

New Delhi: Former IPS officer Suresh Khopade will be the Aam Aadmi Party candidate who will take on NCP chief`s daughter Supriya Sule from Baramati in Maharashtra as the party on Wednesday released its fifth list of candidates for 56 Lok Sabha seats.

The party delcared candidates in the states of Assam (6), Bihar (8), Gujarat (2), Kerela (6), Maharashtra (17), Madhya Pradesh (7), Uttar Pradesh (9) and one from Himachal Pradesh. From Maharashtra, two police officers will be enter the electoral fray on AAP ticket. Khopade, who will fight against Sule from Sharad Pawar`s bastion in Baramati in Western Maharashtra, is a former Police Commissioner of Mumbai Railways. Sanjay Apranti, another officer from state police service, will contest from Raigad, a seat currently represented by Shiv Sena MP Anant Gite. The Maharashtra police website states that Apranti has been kept on "compulsory waiting". He has also served as SP Raigad. From Hatkanangle, a seat in Western Maharashtra, AAP has given ticket to farmer leader Raghunath Patil. The seat is represented by Raju Shetti of the Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghtana, with whom AAP was keen for a tie-up but the former chose to go with saffron alliance. From Bihar, former JDU member and National secretary of All India Safai Mazdoor Sangh, Geeta Arya will contest from Sasaram, a seat currently represented by Lok Sabha speaker Meira Kumar. Arya had joined the party just before the elections. From Kerala, party has given ticket to former TIME journalist Anita Pratap from Ernakulam, a seat represented by Union Minister KV Thomas. Kamal Kant Batra, mother of Kargil martyr Captain Vikram Batra, will contest from Hamirpur, a seat held by BJP MP and Bhartiya Janta Yuva Morcha president Anurag Thakur. < AAP has so far declared names of 187 candidates for the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.