In view of the Delhi Assembly elections becoming the cynosure of the nation, with the principal contenders putting things on the electoral sweep-stakes and the people originally from Uttarakhand constituting a sizable section of the electorate, both BJP and Congress leaders from the State have been hitting the campaign trail to woo the voters to their sides.
However, the State watchers say there is nothing novel in the development as the practice of political parties sending leaders to UP and Delhi during Assembly and general elections has been enduring for long.
Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is not, however, left far behind as, despite being a fledgling one in terms of support base in Uttarakhand, it has been sending its activists, associated with it since the days India Against Corruption movement was launched. Out of the 70 Assembly constituencies in the national capital, there are about a dozen seats where the voters originally hailing from Uttarakhand can tilt the balance. The BJP is pulling no stops to use all its available weapons up to the hilt to sway the outcome in its favour.
Similarly, senior Congress leaders, including Chief Minister Harish Rawat and State Congress president Kishore Upadhyaya remained ensconced in Delhi to sway voters to the grand old party’s grandstanding of secularism and pro-poor comprehensive development.