One may disagree but it is for sure when people of Uttarakhand for the first time after a long time, must be voting on Wednesday for candidates of their choice from their respective parliamentary constituencies amid Modi wave as the BJP has claimed.
There was not that kind of clear cut wave in 2009 general elections. So many people may not agree with Narendra Modi's views or vision for the country. But they can be seen here becoming part of the discussion on BJP's prime minsterial candidate, Narendra Modi at every place nowadays.
So, more than 67 lakh voters of the Himalayan State will have only two options in mind — either to vote for a change or follow the traditional electoral politics by maintaining loyalty to a particular party or candidate as has been witnessed in the past. More so, role of a little over 1.50 lakh young voters aged between 18 to 20 years will be crucial in deciding fate of candidates in all five seats of the hill State.
However, it is effect of the relentless and high-tech campaigning of the BJP for the past six months or anti-incumbency factor against the Congress led UPA Government at the Centre for a decade, discussion over BJP's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi has become part and parcel of routine discourse of people walking on the street.
“BJP's projection of Narendra Modi for Prime Minister of this country for a change has given us a ray of hope,” said Satbir Kumar a shopkeeper in Rudrapur.
“Public gathering in Modi's rally only reflects popular mood. But the irony of our society is that most of the times people do not go to cast their votes. That is why we appeal to all that they must exercise their franchise. We must vote for right candidate rising above caste politics”, Kumar added.
Perhaps realising the mood of the people, BJP candidate Bhagat Singh Koshiyari has said that he is not fighting this elections on caste and communal lines. “All are equal for me. Therefore, I hope the electorate of my constituency would definitely take a right decision while exercising their franchise keeping in view development and good governance under the leadership of Modi”, he added.
In the meantime, as people here believe, this was rather a Modi versus Chief Minister Harish Rawat electoral clash in Uttarakhand that came to end with ending of campaigning here on Tuesday.
The election campaign of the Congress party in the state was like a one man show led by Chief Minister Harish Rawat. His frequent visits from one part of the hill State to other on daily basis only gives that impression.
The fact is that even from the day of nomination beginning on April 12 to ending of campaigning on May 5, no senior Congress leaders like state party president Yashpal Arya or senior leader Indira Hardiyesh came before the media in the Haldwani region to talk about what the party has in store for the electorate. Rather the state leadership of the Congress party deployed its second rung leaders and party spokesperson like Shilpi Arora, Dr. Bhupla Bhakuni, Sanjeev Arya to name a few to talk to the media on party's election matters here on daily basis.