Ex-Delhi Police officer Deepak Mishra meets BJP's Delhi unit in-charge for LS poll

Former Delhi Police officer Deepak Mishra Tuesday met BJP's Delhi unit in-charge for Lok Sabha polls Nirmala Sitharaman, triggering speculations about him being considered as a party candidate from the national capital. BJP sources claimed the meeting lasted for about 20 minutes at the party's DDU Marg headquarters.

Sources said that Mishra and Sitharaman are both from JNU and know each other. "Mishra, who belongs to Jharkhand, may be fielded from a Lok Sabha seat in Delhi, having sizeable number of Purvanchali voters," they said.

The list of BJP candidates from Delhi is yet to be announced. The local unit has drawn up a list of over 30 probables, including all seven sitting MPs. Delhi BJP chief Manoj Tiwari, a Purvanchali, currently holds the North East Delhi seat.

Bhojpuri-speaking people from eastern UP, Bihar and Jharkhand, settled in the national capital, have significant presence in almost all the seven seats, especially in North East, West and South Delhi constituencies. A 1984-batch IPS officer, Mishra retired in December last year. He was with the CRPF at that time.

While in Delhi Police, Mishra had served as special commissioner, law and order. He was also among the probables for the police commissioner's post after Alok Verma took over as CBI chief.

(With inputs from agencies.)