Congress candidates for the Lok Sabha elections in Uttarakhand are “disenchanted” as the party workers feel that they have been ‘disowned’ by the central leadership when the compared to BJP’s aggressive approach which is set to improve its voting percentage by taking the lead in announcing the candidates much advance and a massive rally to kick-start by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday in the Himalayan state.
One of the Congress candidate of the five Parliamentary seat rued the fact that not a single popular leader of the grand old party has been able to reach out to them yet for any form of campaigning given the fact that any poll candidate can maximum reach out to maximum four villages in a day in this tough terrains.
“This is a well known fact that the connectivity is a major issue in hilly areas and on a given day campaign can be focused only in limited villages or towns as travel time is more from reaching one place to another. We have a good chance in atleast two Lok Sabha seats including that of Haridwar due to a triangular contest. Time is running short as we go to polls in the first phase only on April 19,” shared the party candidate on the sidelines of his campaign.
He told The Pioneer that rather than doing team work for improving on consolidated vote percentage couple of the party’s political stalwart are concerned in establishing their kins or in a way working as Team B for the BJP.
However Uttarakhand Congress chief spokesperson Garima Dasauni expressed her delight that there has been immense support to the candidates and workers are sweating it out their best to take advantage of the strong anti-incumbent factor against the BJP’s Central and State’s ‘misrule’. “We are talking issues concerning people while they (BJP) talking polarizing. People have now understood that current regime will bring more trouble to them as there is a palpable restlessness within,” Dauani told The Pioneer in Dehradun.
Modi initiated the the BJP’s Lok Sabha poll campaign in Uttarakhand on Tuesday by addressing a rally in Rudrapur, which is part of the Nainital-Udham Singh Nagar constituency. “Uttarakhand lives in the heart of the prime minister. The people of Uttarakhand also look forward to his visits eagerly and the party will retain all the seats. Not just election time bu party workers remain with the people round the clock,” state BJP spokesman Satish Lakhera said.
While BJP chief JP Nadda will begin his tour of the state on Wednesday during which he will address public meetings in Pithoragarh under the reserved Almora Lok Sabha seat and Vikasnagar under the Tehri Garhwal constituency. On April 4, Nadda will hold a roadshow in Haridwar.
In 2019, BJP got a massive 61.01 per cent vote share, while the grand old Party 31.40 per cent followed by BSP which stood third, with 4.48 per cent vote share. Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) has also been an entity in the State with a sizeable vote share and has announced its candidates for all the five Lok Sabha seats which goes to polls in the first phase of April 19.
The Haridwar and Tehri Garhwal Lok Sabha is witnessing a triangular contest between sitting three time MP Maharani Mala Ràjya Rani Shah of BJP, Jot Singh Gunsola of Congress and Bobby Panwar as an Indepdendent. Shah is the Royal descendant of Kingdom Tehri.
The other four Lok Sabha seats in Uttarakhand are Pauri Garhwal with sitting BJP MP Tirath Singh Rawat but the current contest is between BJP’s chief media incharge Anil Baluni and Ganesh Gondiyal of Congress.
While Union Minister BJP’s Ajay Bhatt and Prakash Joshi of Congress are in Nainital Udhamsingh Nagar, Ajay Tamta of BJP and Pradeep Tamta of Congress are in a fight in Almora.
Interesting seat to watch is Trivendra Singh Rawat of BJP and Virendra Rawat of Congress in Haridwar, a constituency represented by former CM and former Union Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal. Sitting independent MLA Umesh Kumar is now giving restless nights to both the Rawats as Umesh is contesting as an independent and has gathered a large base.
Sources said Umesh demanded the ticket for Haridwar seat from Congress but denied since the stand taken by former State CM Harish Rawat who insisted his son Virendra’s candidature and if denied then threatened to quit the party.
