BJP retains hold in Uttaranchal
Bhartiya Janta Party has retained its foothold in Uttaranchal by winning three of the five Lok Sabha seats in the state with the sole setback in Hardwar.
BJP has retained its foothold in Uttaranchal by winning three of the five Lok Sabha seats in the state.
The saffron party's only setback was in Hardwar where its sitting MP Harpal Singh Sathi was placed at third position. Rajendra Kumar (SP) won the Hardwar seat defeating BSP candidate with a comfortable margin of more than 37000 votes.
BJP had won four of the five seats in the 1999 General Elections.
Union Transport and Highways Minister B C Khanduri retained his Pauri-Garhwal seat. He defeated his rival and Uttaranchal Tourism Minister Lt Gen (retd) TPS Rawat in what was billed as a war between two generals by a margin of 51,000 votes.
In Almora, BJP's candidate and Union Minister of State for Science and Technology Bachi Singh Rawat defeated his Congress opponent Renuka Rawat, wife of PCC Chief Harish Rawat, by 6933 votes.
Maharaja Manbendra Shah continued his winning streak wresting the Tehri seat for the record eighth time by a margin of over 17000 votes.
Shah, who has not tasted defeat since 1991, beat Vijay Bahuguna (Congress) for the second consecutive time.
However, the Congress party managed to retain the Nainital seat where its candidate KC Singh baba defeated Vijay Bansal(BJP) by 50,000 votes.