D-day for Uttarakhand today

On Wednesday, the state will see its Assembly elections after a year-long political instability

Last Updated : Feb 15 2017 | 1:23 AM IST

Only N D Tiwari has given a five-year-long stable government in to Uttarakhad. After Tiwari’s exit, political instability kept haunting the hill state as chief ministers were changed repeatedly by both Bharatiya Janata Party and Congress.

And last year, the instability reached its peak when the Harish Rawat government was dismissed and later reinstated.

On Wednesday, the state will see its Assembly elections after a year-long political instability, making it a day of reckoning. The polling will be held for 69 constituencies after the election for the lone Karanprayag seat was countermanded following the death of Kuldip Singh Kanwasi, a BSP candidate. The polling in Karanprayag will be held on March 9. “Preparations for the polling have already been made,” said an Election Commission official.

The ruling Congress is facing a stiff challenge from BJP in almost all the seats.

In more than 20 seats, the contest is likely to be very close. Even a difference of 100 votes can change dimensions, especially in Assembly seats such as Vikasnagar, Dehradun Cantt, Narendra nagar, Doiwala and Ranikhet, claimed political experts. But hours before the polling, a purported sting operation accusing Rawat of bribing Dan Singh Bhandari, a former BJP MLA, created flutter in the political circles of Uttarakhand.

Bhandari, who quit from BJP and the state Assembly last year, is now contesting on a Congress ticket from Bhimtal constituency in Kumaon region.

Putting up a brave front, the chief minister asked the EC to stop all television channels from showing the sting video. The state Congress President Kishore Upadhyaya termed it as a “BJP conspiracy” to dent the image of the ruling party ahead of election. “We strongly condemned BJP for hatching a conspiracy against Congress through this sting operation,” said Upadhyaya.

Questioning the timing of the sting operation, Surendra Kumar, Chief Minister’s spokesman, lodged a complaint with the EC claiming the sting operation was aired by a private channel just 48 hours before the polling to mislead voters and to build an atmosphere against Congress.

Kumar also asked the EC to stop the channel from airing the video and also on the social media. However, BJP was quick to demand the resignation of the Chief Minister and an inquiry by the CBI. “We are demanding an immediate resignation of the Chief Minister. We have also asked the CBI which is probing a similar sting operation against Rawat to club the new sting operation also,” said Ajay Bhatt, president of the state BJP.