DEHRADUN: In several constituencies like Kedarnath, Yamunotri, Tehri, Dhanolti and Rudrapur, a direct fight between Congress and the BJP was expected. However, rebels and independents have made these contests multi-cornered and may well decide the fate of these seats.
In 2017, an independent candidate from Kedarnath, Kuldip Singh Rawat had lost the poll only by a wafer-thin margin. This time, too, he is contesting from the seat independently, making the battle tougher for BJP’s Shaila Rani Rawat and Congress’s Manoj Rawat, the incumbent MLA.
In another Char Dham town, Yamunotri, Congress rebel Sanjay Dobhal is expected to cut into the votes of the two major parties. A few weeks ago, zila panchayat chairman Deepak Bijilwan had joined the Congress and was made the party candidate from Yamunotri. On the other hand, BJP has placed its bet on sitting MLA Kedar Singh.
An interesting battle is expected at Tehri as well. Former Congress chief Kishore Upadhyay and sitting BJP MLA Dhan Singh Negi switched sides barely two days before the nomination process was to end on January 28. Negi was made the Congress candidate and Upadhyay the BJP nominee from the Tehri constituency. Former tourism minister Dinesh Dhanai is also contesting from the seat. Dhanai floated his own party – Uttarakhand Jansektya Party – and his presence has made the fight intriguing.
In Dhanolti, independent MLA, Pritam Singh Panwar, joined the BJP a few months before the election and was made the party candidate from the constituency. Soon after, BJP’s Mahaveer Singh Rangarh turned a rebel and contested the poll as an independent. From Congress, veteran leader Jot Singh Bisht had been given the ticket and a spit in BJP votes could work in favour of the seasoned campaigner.
In Rudrapur, BJP denied a ticket to the two-time legislator, Rajkumar Thukral. He was replaced by Shiv Arora. This didn’t go down well with Thukral and he contested from the seat independently. He won the seat in 2012 and 2017 and is expected to make a major dent in the BJP vote bank in the constituency. Meanwhile, the presence of Meena Sharma from Congress has made the battle a triangular one.
