New Delhi, November 16 (IANS). Congress and BJP have put in all their strength for the by-election to be held on November 20 on Kedarnath assembly seat of Uttarakhand.
Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami himself is leading the charge to bring Kedarnath Assembly seat to BJP. At the same time, on behalf of Congress, State President Karan Mahra is also continuously accusing BJP of ignoring Kedarnath and appealing to the public to vote in favor of Congress.
So far, BJP candidates have won this seat thrice and Congress candidates have won twice. Kedarnath assembly seat has become vacant after the death of BJP MLA Shaila Rani Rawat. BJP and Congress candidates claim that this seat is going in their bag. Asha Nautiyal is in the fray on BJP ticket. His competition is with Congress leader Manoj Rawat.
In the year 2002, Asha Nautiyal had won this seat on BJP ticket. In the next election in 2007, Asha Rani Nautiyal won on BJP ticket. Whereas, in 2012, Shaila Rani Rawat won from Congress, while in 2017, Manoj Rawat won as a Congress candidate. In the year 2022, Shaila Rani Rawat won from here on BJP ticket.
The issue of employment is most important in Kedarnath. Yatra to Kedarnath is also one of the main issues because it is also a source of employment for the people here.
Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami held an election rally here on Saturday. He has said that for the last three years, the number of devotees coming to Kedarnath Dham has been setting new records, due to which business worth crores has been generated in the area and new doors of employment have opened for the local people.
He expressed confidence that as a result of the unprecedented work done by the double engine government, the people here will make BJP victorious by a record number of votes in the by-elections. He accused Congress of hurting the sentiments of the region and the state and doing divisive politics.
CM Dhami said that the thinking of Congress has been against Sanatan culture. Whenever there was a crisis in Uttarakhand, Congress only played politics and tried to confuse the people. Under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, unprecedented development work has been done in Kedarnath assembly constituency in the last 10 years.
State Congress President Karan Mahara has said that the people here are upset due to the misgovernance of BJP. In the last two-three years, Kedarnath and Chardham Yatra have been ruined by BJP. Business has declined there and there is a lot of resentment among the people about this. The condition of schools and hospitals is not good. BJP candidate Asha Nautiyal has not made any efforts for the development of the area and the interests of women. Even as crimes against women have increased in the state, she has remained silent and has never said anything on this. People here are angry with the government and will vote in favor of Congress.
–IANS
DKM/AKJ
