Nirmala Sitharaman: The BJP offered for Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to run from Andhra Pradesh or Tamil Nadu in the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections, but she turned them down. It was in a recent media discussion when the senior BJP politician stated she lacked the ‘kind of cash’ needed to start an election campaign.
During the TIMES NOW Summit 2024, Nirmala Sitharaman revealed her decision not to contest after reflecting for about a week or ten days. She cited financial constraints as a major factor, expressing uncertainty about the demands of winnability criteria, especially in states like Andhra Pradesh or Tamil Nadu. She mentioned concerns about considerations such as community or religious background. Sitharaman expressed gratitude for the acceptance of her reasoning, ultimately concluding that she won’t be participating in the contest.
In elaborating her stance, Nirmala Sitharaman emphasized, “My salary, earnings, and savings belong to me personally, and are not drawn from the Consolidated Fund of India.”
The BJP has nominated several sitting Rajya Sabha members, including Piyush Goyal, Bhupender Yadav, Rajiv Chandrasekhar, Mansukh Mandaviya, and Jyotiraditya Scindia, for the upcoming elections. However, Nirmala Sitharaman, who is currently a Rajya Sabha MP from Karnataka, stated that she will focus solely on campaigning for various candidates rather than contesting herself.
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I’ll also be participating in numerous media events and accompanying candidates on their campaigns. For instance, tomorrow I’ll be joining Rajiv Chandrasekhar’s campaign. So, indeed, I’ll be actively involved in the campaign trail, she further explained.