When the Leader of Opposition — 81-year-old LK Advani — pumped iron at a gym in Ahmedabad on Friday, he was reminding everyone that he is still Bharatiya Janata Party’s ‘Iron Man’. But party President Rajnath Singh might need to display a different kind of ‘mettle’ in the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections.
Daya Rani Kinnar, a 45-year-old eunuch, has declared her intent to contest for the Lok Sabha seat from Ghaziabad constituency. Singh, who will contest his first Lok Sabha election this time, is also a candidate from this constituency. His candidature was announced last November.
Kinnar is a popular figure in Ghaziabad and will stand for election as an independent candidate. “I don’t mind taking on all the political heavyweights. I was born in Ghaziabad and people know me. I don’t have children. I will work only for people. I am going to give a tough fight to Rajnath Singh, who is an outsider. The sitting MP did nothing for the constituency,” Kinnar said.
Kinnar, founder of Sarva Samaj Sewa Samiti (a welfare organisation), promises a safe, developed Ghaziabad district.
Although illiterate, Kinnar is confident. City roads are already lined with her banners and hoardings. In these, she appears with a bindi on her forehead and head draped in a sari.
{{/usCountry}}Although illiterate, Kinnar is confident. City roads are already lined with her banners and hoardings. In these, she appears with a bindi on her forehead and head draped in a sari.
{{/usCountry}}She is banking on the electorate’s disenchantment with politicians. “I am just like a ‘no-vote option’ button on electronic voting machines,” she said.