As many as 29 satraps, including some from the two principal parties — BJP and Congress — and some Independents, locked in the electoral battle, are still unsure of the way the wind is blowing in the State even a few hours before the polling would be held. The electorate, keeping a stony silence all through the high-octane campaign, seems to have prodded them to spend time in uncertain anticipation. Eyes are, however, focused on the seats these leaders are battling from as the post-election scenario would depend much whether they would make it to the State’s fourth Assembly or not.
Focus is trained on Chaubattakhal constituency in Pauri district from where the senior BJP leader Satpal Maharaj whose name is doing the rounds as CM probable is testing the electoral water. As things stand now, he is locked in a grim battle against the formidable Congress candidate Rajpal Singh Bisht. Besides, the Independent Kavindar Ishtwal breathing down over the neck of the saint-turned politician has made it difficult for him to breathe easy. Notably, the nomination was given to Maharaj from the seat, giving a short shrift to the party’s sitting MlA Teerath Singh Rawat who was also a former State BJP president.
Chief Minister Harish Rawat who has been contesting election from Haridwar rural and Kichha seats in Haridwar and Udham Singh Nagar districts respectively is taking on two sitting BJP MlAs — Swami Yatiswaranand and Rajesh Shukla — respectively. Both the seats being cynosure of the eyes because of the presence of the ruling party's poster boy, it is unlikely that any of the two saffron contestants would prove to be the giant killer to deal to the ruling party a severe blow.
The position of State BJP president Ajay Bhatt — the State party chief as well as the leader of the Opposition in the present Assembly — who is contesting from Ranikhet seat in Almora district, is, however, vulnerable. He is pitted against the Congress candidate and former MlA Karan Mahra and Independent Pramod Nainwal who is a BJP rebel. Notably, in the previous faceoff, Bhatt just scarped through with a wafer thin margin.
Things are similar for the state PCC president Kishore Upadhyay who is in the fray from Sahaspur constituency. He was humbled in the last face-off while trying his electoral luck from Tehri constituency as the Independent Dinesh Dhanai won the seat by around 400 votes. Pitted against the sitting BJP MlA Sahdev Pundir and the Congress rebel Aryendra Sharma, Upadhyay is toiling hard to reverse his electorate fate by conjuring up a victory from a difficult constituency.
One of the two Cabinet Ministers who left Congress to join BJP, Yashpal Arya seems to have a tough task ahead. Contesting from Bazpur constituency, he is facing a strong Congress contender Sunita Bajwa. Another cabinet minister Harak Singh Rawat who raised the banner of revolt against the chief minister in March 2016, leading to a short-lived President's Rule in the state is not also finding the going easy from Kotdwar constituency. Known for his penchant to switch from constituency to constituency in every election, the irrepressible Harak is locking horns with the State Cabinet Minister Surendra Singh Negi who carved a niche for himself in the annals of the State's poll history by humbling the BJP’s chief ministerial face B C Khanduri from the same constituency in the previous face-off.
Subodh Uniyal, one of nine dissidents switching sides, post the March 18 revolt, is not breathing easy either. Contesting from the prestigious Narendranagar seat, he is facing a grim battle against the Congress candidate Himanshu Bijalwan and BJP dissident and former MlA Omgopal. The latter, given his clout in the area, is likely to eat into a considerable chunk of Uniyal's votes, making things uncertain for him. Both the Congress and BJP candidates belonging to the Brahmin caste, Omgopal being a Rajput is likely to get away a large chunk of the Rajput votes whose number might prove decisive to seal the fate of the candidates.
Pradeep Batra, one of the nine Congress dissidents, contesting from Roorkee on BJP ticket, is battling a grim fight too with the BJP-turned Congress leader Suresh Chand Jain giving him a tough challenge. Their ability to keep their individual vote banks intact would decide the outcome going this way or that way, say the observers.
Dr Shailarani Rawat, another of the nine Congress 'turncoats', is in the fray from Kedarnath seat as a BJP candidate. Pitted against the former BJP MlA Asha Nautiyal who turned rebel on being made to clear the way for the Congress 'turncoat' contesting as an Independent and the Congress candidate Manoj Rawat, a journalist of repute, Shailarani's position is fairly vulnerable. Desperate to show that her clout remains intact, Nautiyal is going at full throttle to make the BJP candidate kiss the dust of defeat.
Saurabh Bahuguna, son of the former CM Vijay Bahuguna, contesting from Sitarganj seat, is also on sticky wicket, fighting against Malti Biswas of Congress. The seat being in Udham Singh Nagar district, the fight is all the more precarious for the Bahuguna scion with the CM himself contesting from one of the 11 seats in the district to bolster the prospects of Congress. His father won the seat in a by-election after he was made the CM of the state, post 2012 election.
Former MlAs, Dr Shailendra Singhal and Pranav Singh Champion, contesting from Jaspur (Udham Singh Nagar) and Khanpur (Haridwar) respectively, have remained on the winning streak while maintaining their grip over the votes of a particular community. Former Congress leaders now contesting on BJP tickets, the duo is going all out to retain these seats against odds with the CM himself contesting seats from both the districts.
Garhwal MP and former CM BC Khanduri's daughter Ritu Khanduri Bhushan who was awarded ticket with the party shunting out the sitting MlA Vijay Barthwal is contesting from Yamkeshwar of Pauri district. The going is tough despite her father enjoying a tall stature with the BJP dissident and former MlA Shailendra Singh Rawat fighting as a Congress candidate.
Sitting MlA from Haridwar Urban Madan Kaushik who was more voluble in the Assembly than the leader of Opposition over the past five years is confident of retaining the seat by a better margin this time with the Congress having fielded Brahmswaroop Brahmachari, a seer-turned politician, supposedly fond of leading a cloistered life, away from the heat and dust of the public life.
Umesh Sharma Kau, another of the nine Congress rebels, contesting the election from Raipur on a BJP ticket is striving hard to retain the seat with BJP dissident Mahendra Singh Negi and eunuch leader Rajni Rawat aside from the Congress candidate Prabhu lal giving him a tough fight.
Rekha Arya who deserted BJP on being denied ticket ahead of the 2012 hustings and won from Someshwar in a by-poll on Congress ticket in July 2014 again played turncoat and switched over to BJP during the crucial floor test deciding the fate of the embattled Harish Rawat government. She is now contesting from the same seat on BJP ticket.
Govind Singh Kunjwal who raised storm repeatedly during the tempestuous days when the future of the Harish Rawat government was at stake following the rebellion within the party is re-contesting from his home turf Jageshwar. BJP has unleashed its best bet Subhash Pandey to stall the controversial Speaker's triumphal march.
Ranjit Rawat, a close confidante of Harish Rawat who took immense pains to keep the flock of Congress MlAs together when the Congress-helmed government was weathering the worst storm is in the fray from Ramnagar constituency. BJP on its part has fielded Deewan Singh Bisht. Notably, Amrita Rawat had won the seat in the 2012 faceoff from Ramnagar seat on a Congress ticket. later in March 2016, she crossed over to the saffron camp along with eight others.
Three heavy weight cabinet ministers- Dinesh Aggrawal, Preetam Singh and Navprabhat - have been fighting from Dharampur, Chakrata and Vikasnagar seats respectively. Except Navprabhat, the other two have been parts of Uttarkahand Assembly since the state's maiden election in 2002.
Cabinet Minister Indira Hridayesh who is supposed to be tallest leader of the state party after Harish Rawat is contesting from Haldwani. Congress is betting everything on her victory, given the fact that whenever she won the party formed the government. BJP having fielded a light weight candidate Jogendra Routela seems to have reconciled itself to the Congress stalwart remaining on the triumphal streak.
Minister Rajendra Singh Bhandari, who also enjoys the distinction of being a part of the Vidhan Sabha since 2002 election, is re-contesting from his redoubt Badrinath. Though toiling hard to rupture history, BJP candidate Mahendra Bhatt seems to be fighting a lost battle with odds playing against him.
However, the fate of another cabinet minister Mantri Prasad Naithani seems to be hanging in balance. In the fray from Devprayag seat whence he was elected the last time, he is feeling the heat of the contest this time while battling against anti-incumbency. Contesting as an Independent, he turned the table of the Congress as he defeated the party candidate SS Sajwan during election-2012. This time, fighting as Congress candidate, he is locking horns with the same Sajwan in the fray this time as an Independent.
Two BJP dissidents MlA Bhimlal Arya and Dan Singh Bhandari-the duo deserted the saffron camp when the rival sides were crossing swords at critical moments of the Congress government's stormy tenure- are now contesting as Congress candidates from Ghansali and Bhimtal respectively. Curious eyes would follow these two constituencies with BJP pulling out all the stops to spite their chances of entering into the new Assembly.