The Congress poll list that announces Chief Minister Harish Rawat plunging into the electoral cauldron from Haridwar Rural seat has endowed the seat with a special aura, something that seems to have taken the ruling party’s rivals - Bharatiya Janata Party and Bahujan Samaj Party - by surprise. Swami Yateeshwaranand is the BJP contestant while BSP has fielded Mukarram Ansari for the seat. Earlier, there was a buzz in the state political circles that the CM’s daughter Anupama Rawat would contest from the seat.
BJP and BSP strategised their respective poll plans, keeping this possibility in view. But now, the CM himself plunging into the heat of the contest from here is making both the rivals to re-strategise, not just for this seat but for all the 11 seats up for grabs in Haridwar district under the assumption that the CM’s electoral presence in the district is likely to bolster the prospects of the ruling party across 11 seats spread over it.
Putting on a brave front, BJP says that they are far from being unnerved by the announcement. “The people of Haridwar would ask him about his contribution to the development of the district since the days he was the MP from Haridwar.
later, he became the Union water resources minister and then the chief minister. Not sure of his victory from this seat, he has fielded himself from another one. His fear is palpable ,” said Swami Yateeshwaranand.
Mukarram Ansari, the BSP candidate, sounded unperturbed too. “CM being in the contest does not make any difference for us. We are very much in the contest and would be so, irrespective of who the ruling party has fielded as its candidate. His daughter choosing not to contest fearing imminent defeat, her father has stepped in,” he said confidently.
The constituency having round 1.20 lakh voters, Dalit, Muslim and other communities influence the outcome, constituting a major chunk of the electorate here. All the parties are strategizing their poll plans, keeping these peculiar caste equations in view.
Observers say that it is advantage Congress courtesy Harish Rawat’s overpowering presence in the scene. “With none other the CM in the fray, the three major communities might gravitate towards the ruling party, making the going tough for both BJP and BSP,” said a state watcher based in Haridwar.