The Congress Party that won all the five lok Sabha seats in 2009 general elections in Uttarakhand hands down, seems to have adopted a different strategy of taking on its opponents this time to repeat the same electoral performance in the crucial 2014 lok Sabha polls.
The ruling State Congress Party has already made its intentions clear in this regard by raking up an old case of October 2, 2011 incident of Udham Singh Nagar's Rudrapur and the BJP MlA from Rudrapur Raj Kumar Thukral is on the run for about one month to avoid arrest in the same case.
Congress critics and more importantly, the State BJP leaders have already raised their voices against reopening of the aforesaid case, describing this move of the Congress as a political vendetta.
The ruling Congress Party's opponents have now also questioned the timing of reopening of this case.
The political commentators and old hands in Kumaon affairs here are of the view that there is no need to rake up the about two-year-old case of Rudrapur this time.
At a time when the timing is up for holding the 2014 polls, such a move of any Government against its opponents will only lead to suspicion in political circles, they add.
Unlike many mountainous regions of Uttarakhand, the Terai-region of this Himalayan state including Udham
Singh Nagar and Nainital's Haldwani to name few areas are extremely sensitive from
political point of view mainly because of their complex caste equations.
Yet it is to note here that as the hill state's history suggests, people of this region have always shown their belief in social cohesiveness even from the old UP period.
There was no communal tension reported here in the past history of the hill state. But, the social conscience-keepers here believe, certain groups tried to vitiate the atmosphere of mutual
coexistence here in October 2, 2011 in Rudrapur. Now raking up the same old case may give rise to the political temperature ahead in this region, they
further say.
The interesting fact is that the ruling Congress Party must be denying the move against its opponents as politically motivated. But timing of raising these issues tells otherwise.
Now, the recent move of the State Congress-led Government against yoga guru Baba Ramdev has again raised doubts over timing of leveling certain charges against Ramdev. When the attention of State Congress Party general secretary Prayag Bhatt was drawn to the issue of registering many cases against Ramdev's trust, he, however, maintained that the step has been taken against him as per the laid down procedure. Therefore, much can't be said on this issue and the law will take its course.
However, he maintained that though Baba Ramdev is a yoga guru, his political affiliations are known to all.
It is to be seen how the State Government takes its battle that it has launched against its opponents, in the electoral battle ahead.