PNS | DEHRADUN
The prestige of chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami and Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) president Karan Mahara and many senior leaders including cabinet ministers is at stake in the elections of the 100 urban local bodies (ULB) in Uttarakhand. The results of the elections which will be declared on Saturday will influence the politics of the State and decide the political stature of many leaders of the State.
Dhami led the campaign of the BJP from the front as he addressed more than 52 public meetings and held road shows in all parts of the State in a period of 12 days. The BJP and chief minister Dhami are under pressure to retain the urban fortresses of the party in the Himalayan State. In the ULB elections held in the year 2018, elections were held in seven municipal corporations in the State and BJP registered victory in five (Dehradun, Rishikesh, Haldwani, Kashipur and Rudrapur) municipal corporations.
The Congress candidates won mayoral elections in Haridwar and Kotdwar municipal corporations. This time elections are being held in 11 municipal corporations of the State and the BJP is hoping to improve its performance of last time. In 2018, the BJP candidates were elected chairpersons in Pauri, Gopeshwar, Karnprayag, Duggada, Vikasnagar, Narendranagar,Muni ki Reti, Shiwalik Nagar, Pithoragarh, Didihat, Dharchula, Bageshwar, Lohaghat, Champawat, Tanakpur and Gangolihat municipal councils.
Apart from chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, the prestige of assembly speaker Ritu Khanduri is at stake in Kotdwar. Similarly the prestige of cabinet minister Dhan Singh Rawat is at stake in Srinagar and Pauri while the result of Rishikesh municipal corporation elections is important for cabinet ministers Subodh Uniyal and Premchand Agarwal.
The PCC president Karan Mahara and the leader of opposition Yashpal Arya led the campaign of the Congress party in the ULB polls. The party is hoping to improve its performance from the elections held in the year 2018 and make a dent into the urban forts of the ruling BJP. The Congress party has faced a series of electoral reversals in the State in the last 10 years and in such a condition, a better performance in the ULB polls can boost the sagging morale of the Congress workers. Realising this all the senior leaders of the State Congress including former CM Harish Rawat, PCC president Mahara, LoP Yashpal Arya, former PCC president Pritam Singh and Ganesh Godiyal, former ministers Harak Singh Rawat, Surveer Singh Sajwan and Navprabhat campaigned extensively for the party candidates.
