BHOPAL: In an unexpected move and what seems to be a major shift from the pre-poll alliance strategy understanding with the Congress, the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) on Thursday announced its candidates for 22 seats for the upcoming assembly elections.BSP national general secretary in-charge of Madhya Pradesh, Ramachal Rajbhar told TOI that BSP supremo Mayawati has decided the party will field its candidates in all 230 assembly seats."BSP has declared names of 22 candidates today and the remaining 208 candidates for the assembly elections here will be announced before October 5. Our party under the leadership of Behen Mayawati will contest all seats in the state with full strength and confidence," Rajbhar said.Over the past four months, the Congress has been asserting that a pre-poll alliance was likely with the BSP. The poll alliance would be primarily for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, but the initial seat-sharing would start from the November-December assembly elections in the four states. Even last week, PCC chief Kamal Nath had claimed, "Talks are on with BSP, SP and the Gondwana Gantantra Party. The situation will be clear very soon."On Thursday, all top Congress leaders from the state including Kamal Nath, Digvijaya Singh, Jyotiraditya Scindia, Ajay Singh, Suresh Pachauri, Vivek Tankha and Kantilal Bhuria were in an election committee and screening committee meeting in New Delhi when the BSP announced its first list of candidates. In 2013 assembly elections, BSP contested 227 constituencies and won four seats including Dimni, Ambah, Raigaon and Mangawan. It secured a total 6.29% of total votes polled.Candidates declared on Thursday are for seats mainly from the Chambal and Vindhya districts adjoining the Uttar Pradesh border including two from Morena, one from Bhind, one from Datia, one from Shivpuri, one in Ashokemanagr, one in Chhattarpur, two in Damoh, three in Satna, four in Rewa, one in Singrauli, one in Sidhi, one in Shahdol and one in Umaria. Candidates for one seat in Katni and another from Jabalpur have also been announced.Two of the 22 candidates are sitting MLAs – Usha Choudhary from Raigaon in Satna district and Shiela Tyagi from Mangawan in Rewa. Two others Ram Lakhan Singh Patel from Rampur Baghelan and Ramgarib Kol from Sirmaur are the party’s former MLAs.Ruling BJP is still observing the situation. State BJP vice-president Vijesh Lunawat said, "For 15 years, the BJP government has been working for the development for the people. In future, the BJP under chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan will work for a "samriddha (prosperous) Madhya Pradesh. In 2003, 2008 and 2013 the people of the state have been with the BJP. It makes no difference for us whether the BSP enters or does not enter an alliance with the Congress. We are confident that people are with the BJP."