BJP's Sona Ram Choudhary (L) files his nomination from Barmer.
The BJP's brand new import, Col Sonaram Choudhary, filed his nomination papers in Barmer in Rajasthan today.
Hours later, Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje arrived for Col Choudhary's first rally as BJP's candidate from the town.
The show of strength has been impelled by the rebellion of senior BJP leader
Jaswant Singh, who has filed his papers as an independent candidate, after his party of three decades rejected him to field Col Choudhury.
Col Choudhury quit the Congress days ago; Ms Raje, who recently handed the BJP a clean sweep of Rajasthan in state elections, has reportedly pitched Col Choudhury, a jat leader, as the candidate more likely to win.
Mr Singh's supporters say it's preposterous for a newcomer to be rewarded at the cost of a veteran. The former union minister has said it is an insult that the BJP suggested it could "adjust" him elsewhere.
Yesterday, he also joined the club of detractors who accuse Narendra modi, the BJP's prime ministerial candidate of hubris and the BJP of making him the sole selling point of its campaign.
"NaMo NaMo is a chant for God, not humans... NaMo chant diminishes God by treating human beings as Gods," Mr Singh told NDTV, referring to the moniker used for Mr Modi. (
'Namo chant diminishes God', says Jaswant Singh)
Mr Singh also claimed that he had been expelled by party president Rajnath Singh on the phone for a second time, a charge the BJP has not yet confirmed.
He said that the party had earlier dialed in his eviction in 2009 over the allegation that his book cheer-leaded Mohd Ali Jinnah, the founder of Pakistan. He was re-inducted 10 months later at the urging of senior leader LK Advani.
"Shouldn't have returned to the BJP after first-time expulsion," he said.
Though Mr Singh won the last national election from Darjeeling in West Bengal, he said he wanted to fight too contest this election, likely to be his last, from Barmer because he was born here.