In a major development ahead of the state assembly election in Uttarakhand, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) expelled senior legislator Dr Harak Singh Rawat from the party on Sunday. The poll bound state of Uttarakhand is served by the CM Pushkar Singh Dhami-led administration. The BJP dismissed Dr Rawat for a period of six years citing that the party is not going to tolerate indiscipline and pressure politics.
The decision to expel him was taken after his alleged involvement in anti-party activities. Interestingly, Rawat along with his daughter-in-law Anukriti met the Congress’ state chief on Sunday. According to reports, they are both likely to join the grand old party on Monday. He reportedly told ANI, “Congress Party will form government in Uttarakhand. I will work for the Congress party… BJP will never understand the problems of the common man… I understand their approach. I will continue to work for the welfare of people.”
To drive out anti-incumbency and ensure a victory in Uttarakhand, the BJP has indicated that in the run-up to the election due on February 14, the party will continue with its firm stand and could drop more legislators who face “strong” anti-incumbency in their respective constituencies. As per some party insiders, it has been suggested that 10 to 15 legislators should be ditched to ensure the triumph. BJP insiders have revealed that three major points will be considered for deciding the fate of the legislators — popularity among cadre and voters, activeness, and a clean image.
Earlier, the party’s election in-charge and union minister Pralhad Joshi held deliberations over every seat with CM Dhami, state BJP president Madan Kaushik, and state in-charge Dushyant Gautam in Dehradun. While talking to News 18, Kaushik said, “We have held discussions for every single seat. It’s part of the regular election drill. At this moment, I cannot clearly say (on denial of tickets).” The BJP’s central leadership is reportedly giving final touches to the candidates’ list.
It is pertinent to note here that since the last assembly election in 2017, Uttarakhand has witnessed deep political turmoil within the party apparatus. The state has seen the dismissal of two CMs, making Pushkar Singh Dhami the third CM appointed in five years.
To ensure the smooth victory of the party at a time when the Aam Aadmi Party will also make its debut in Uttarakhand, the BJP has been analysing different survey reports and individual inputs on the performance of the legislators. The “inactiveness” of some of the MLAs, coupled with issues like price rise and joblessness, has reportedly led to discontent among voters, especially the youth, as reported.
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The BJP emerged as the single largest political party in 2017 after bagging 47 percent of the total votes, the highest ever for any political party in the state since its formation in 2001.
“Retaining 47 percent vote share is an uphill task. The party’s strategy is to make whatever corrections needed, including dropping unpopular and poor performers, so it can secure no less than 40 percent vote share,” said a senior BJP leader.
The electoral dynamics in Uttarakhand have emerged as a tough challenge for the BJP with each passing day to counter anti-incumbency. The party is therefore, taking strong actions against legislators for their involvement in anti-party politics.
