Keen contest on cards in Uttaranchal

Both the Congress and BJP are primarily banking on fourth generation Nehru-Gandhi family to romp home victory.

With a keen contest on cards in various constituencies of Uttaranchal, both the Congress and BJP are primarily banking on fourth generation Nehru-Gandhi family to romp home victory.

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While the party in power in the state, Congress is in touch with the leaders in Delhi to arrange a whirlwind tour of the Gandhi siblings-Priyanka Vadra and Rahul Gandhi, the BJP has edged past their Congress rival in this race by managing a schedule of Varun Gandhi's poll meetings in the state.

Varun gandhi is slated to address a public meeting in Vikasnagar area on April 28 followed by another rally in district Pithoragarh region of Kumaon.

The reason for the growing demand of Nehru-Gandhi clan in this hill state is the age-old links the family has with this area. Pundit Nehru himself spent a considerable period of his imprisonment during freedom struggle in Dehradun jail where he is supposed to have penned a portion of his famous book 'Discovery of India'.

This followed frequent visits of Nehru along with his daughter Indira Gandhi to Doon where Rajiv and Sanjay Gandhi were studying. Few of the Nehru family members had settled in Dehradun.

The state Congress president Harish Rawat is hopeful of either Rahul or Rriyanka accompanying Sonia Gandhi on her proposed visit to Uttaranchal in the first week of May.