Just one day left for withdrawal of nominations, the rebels of both Congress and Bharatiya Janata Party remaining in the fray against the official candidates are deepening worry of the top brass of the parties.

Aware of the fact that the presence of the rebels in some seats might tilt the scale this way or the other with the margins of victories generally remaining low, the top leaders of the rival camps are making frantic efforts to let the rebels  withdraw from the electoral battlefields.

However, the efforts are coming cropper with the dissidents refusing to fall in line. Hoping against hope, the leaders said on Monday that most of them would vacate space for the official candidates by Tuesday, the last day for withdrawal.

Political analysts say that the dissidents are now flexing their muscles to convince the high commands of the two parties of the danger in shoving them outside the contest.

However, the BJP brass having induced Yamkeshwar MlA Vijay Barthwal who lost the ticket to the daughter of the former Chief Minister Maj Gen Bhuwan Chandra Khanduri (retd), Ritu Khanduri, to withdraw is being cited as a great success. They said that others, remaining in the fray, would follow suit in the next 24 hours. 

Given the stringency in the posturing of the rebels, it is doubtful that all of the rebels would yield to the party’s persuasion and leave the space for the official candidates, say the observers.  

There is still a number of rebel candidates on the saffron side who are still in the fray, intent on eating into the votes of the official candidates to spite their prospects. For instance, Seema Chouhan, a ticket aspirant for Jaspur  seat, is still in the fray. She filed her nomination as an Independent after being denied ticket   with the  party  awarding it to the Congress rebel  Shailendra Mohan Singhal.

Similarly, Rajiv Aggrawal is challenging BJP candidate Harbhajan Singh Cheema from Kashipur constituency.

Besides, former MlA Asha Nautiyal who lost the election in 2012 to the Congress candidate Shaila Rani Rawat has filed her nomination as an Independent after the BJP pitted Shaila Rani as its candidate from the seat. Nautiyal is quite capable of queering the pitch of Shaila Rani, given her hold over the party cadre unless placated out of the way in the nick of time, observers opine.

Things are no better in the Congress camp with the dissidents remaining determined to fight it out with all their might and main.  For instance, Shilpi Arora is in the election fray against none other than the Chief Minister Harish Rawat in Kichha seat of Udham Singh Nagar district. 

Aryendra Sharma is another rebel on the Congress side who is throwing down the gauntlet to the state    Congress chief Kishore Upadhyay in Sahaspur seat of Dehradun district.

In another instance, the Congress rebel Sanjay Negi has thrown his hat in the electoral ring in Ramangar constituency from where the chief minister Harish Rawat’s close confidante  Ranjit Rawat is  seeking election.

Observers say that in case the rebel is not placated out of the way the scales might tilt in favour of BJP with the party rank and file remaining unenthusiastic to lend full weight behind the aide of the CM.  

Besides, Congress seems to be paying the price of its dichotomy regarding its relation with PDF as the Mussoorie municipal chairman Manmohan Mall who had filed his nomination on Congress symbol for Dhanaulty seat is refusing to vacate in favour of the

PDF contender Preetam Singh Panwar whom the party high command is supporting.  

Sources say that CM Harish Rawat has asked the PCC president Upadhyay to pacify Mall into leaving the electoral field for Panwar in accordance with the party high command’s order.

It is learnt that the CM has warned Upahdyay that in case he failed to placate Mall out of the harm’s way for the PDF stalwart he would not support him in getting elected from Sahaspur constituency. “It is clear that if the State party chief fails to convince Mall to withdraw the Rawat faction would lend tacit support to the rebel Aryendra Sharma to spite Upahdyay’s prospects, says a party insider.