The BJP in Arunachal Pradesh on Tuesday expelled 28 disgruntled party leaders who contested the April 19 Assembly elections against the party’s official nominees after being denied tickets.
BJP’s state disciplinary action committee headed by Tarh Tarak said the leaders have been expelled from the party for six years, according to a statement issued by the state BJP.
The now expelled leaders had contested the Assembly polls on tickets of the National People’s Party (NPP), the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), the People’s Party of Arunachal, and as Independent nominees.
The NPP is headed by Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma.
The ruling BJP had fielded 60 candidates in all the Assembly seats in Arunachal, of which 10 were elected unopposed.
The prominent leaders who won without a contest included Chief Minister Pema Khandu, Deputy Chief Minister Chowna Mein, Techi Kaso, Jikke Tako, Nyato Dukam, Mutchu Mithi, and Dasanglu Pul, among others.
The Assembly and Lok Sabha polls in the BJP-ruled state were held simultaneously in the first phase on April 19.
The Assembly election results will be declared on June 2, while the Lok Sabha results will be out on June 4.
