Amidst fluctuating political scenario and perceived factionalism in the Congress party in Uttarakhand, the Chief Minister continued his campaign unveiling his nine-point “Rawat ke Sankalp” (Rawat’s Commitments) agenda for the Vidhan Sabha election 2017. In this agenda, the Congress’ projected chief ministerial candidate has focused on the youth, disaster management, employment for women, network of electricity and water supply with roads among other aspects. In the latest development, after being test-played in the past few days to a “phenomenal response”, a campaign song “NS Uttarakhand Rahe Khushhaal, Rawat Poore Paanch Saal” was also released by the Congress in Uttarakhand.
According to official sources, the song is written, composed and sung by Anand Raj Anand. “The song highlights the “happiness of Uttarakhand” (Uttarakhand Rahe khushal) as topmost priority of the state. The song is about celebration for a better tomorrow - employment opportunities, farmer conditions and call to action (Rawat Poore 5 saal) . The song was composed in a manner which is aimed at generating a positive mood for the people of Uttarakhand. It is a very catchy song which brings the fun element in the whole campaign,” according to the CM’s poll strategists.
The song which was test-played in some days of the Uttarakhand Swabhiman rally received “phenomenal response” from the public. The message of the song is an attack on the centeral government for “deliberately trying to divide Uttarakhand and invoking Uttarakhand’s ‘swabhiman’ and the need to assert oneself while projecting”, while also projecting Harish Rawat as “the only son of the soil who has stood the test of time and worked for the state first,” poll strategists of the chief minister aver.
The song will be used as an integral part in every event, rally and campaign of the Congress party. In addition to this, steps will also be taken to get the song to reach every person in the state via mobile and online media, state official sources. While the chief minister’s camp speaks of the campaign song invigorating the party cadre, skeptics doubt whether the advertisement-projection system will work in favour of the chief minister and the Congress party as supposedly desired. At least visibly, the chief minister Harish Rawat and Uttarakhand Pradesh Congress Committee president Kishore Upadhyay have projected a united image rejecting talk of continued differences between the two leaders and within the party. However, it may take much more than a catchy tune with carefully composed lyrics to effectively tackle the challenges facing the party both from within and from other parties, observers opine.