Friday, 19 APRIL 2024 | PNS | DEHRADUN
The spirit and grittiness exhibited by the Congress candidate Ganesh Godiyal in Garhwal Lok Sabha constituency where he is locked in direct battle with national media spokesperson of BJP Anil Baluni has made the electoral battle for Garhwal interesting. With experts predicting a close contest in Garhwal, the women voters of the constituency are likely to play an important factor in deciding the outcome of the election. In Garhwal LS constituency there are a total of 13,66,983 voters out of whom 6,68,942 are women. There are many Assembly constituencies in Garhwal LS such as Kedarnath, Rudraprayag, Pauri, Chaubatakhal and Kotdwar where the number of women voters is either more or equal to the male voters. Due to the migration of male population, the turnout of women voters is higher in comparison to their male counterparts in the elections. For instance in Pauri district the voter turnout of women voters was 56.44 per cent in LS elections of 2019 which was 11 per cent higher than men. Similarly the voter turnout of women and men voters in Rudraprayag district in 2019 LS election was 63.29 and 45.16 per cent respectively. The factor of higher voter turnout makes women votes crucial in deciding the outcome of electoral battles in Garhwal.
In the campaign for the LS election of 2024 both BJP and Congress tried to woo the women voters. The BJP candidate Baluni is hoping that women voters will support BJP like they did in the LS elections of 2014 and 2019 and Vidhan Sabha elections of 2017 and 2022. BJP hopes that the free ration scheme and Ujjwala gas connection scheme will continue to cast their spell on the women voters of the State. The Congress on the other hand believes that the Ankita Bhandari murder case and increasing unemployment has affected the women voters and this time they will vote for Congress candidate Ganesh Godiyal.
The State president of BJP Mahila Morcha Asha Nautiyal told The Pioneer that the Prime Minister Narendra Modi has empowered women with self help groups and schemes such as Lakhpati Didi and Ujjwala. The BJP government has also given rights to women in property. She claimed that the women voters will continue to support PM Modi and BJP.
The State president of Mahila Congress Jyoti Rautela said that the women have understood the rhetoric of BJP. “The increasing unemployment among youth, Agnipath scheme and Ankita Bhandari murder case has hurt the women and they are determined to teach BJP a lesson. Their anger will get reflected in voting,’’ she said.
