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Race for tickets begins as Uttarakhand Congress braces for Lok Sabha polls
Congress state president Pritam Singh, leader of opposition Indira Hriyadesh, former chief minister Harish Rawat and Rajya Sabha member Pradeep Tamta are in the race for tickets for the Lok Sabha polls, a senior party leader said on condition of anonymity.
Even as the Uttarakhand Congress is set to start its mass-contact and fund-raising campaign this month for the general elections to be held this year, many senior leaders are eyeing tickets for the five Lok Sabha seats in the state though the central leadership is yet to decide on candidates, said party sources familiar with the matter.
The five seats are Nainital, Almora, Tehri Garhwal, Pauri Garhwal and Haridwar.
Congress state president Pritam Singh, leader of opposition Indira Hriyadesh, former chief minister Harish Rawat and Rajya Sabha member Pradeep Tamta are in the race for tickets for the Lok Sabha polls, a senior party leader said on condition of anonymity.
“Among the five seats, four heavyweights are vying for the ticket for Nainital. Harish Rawat, Hriyadesh, two-time Member of Parliament Mahendra Pal and All India Congress Committee secretary Prakash Joshi are in the race,” the leader said.
“As the differences between Hriyadesh and Rawat are an open secret, it will be interesting to see whom the party picks as its candidate for Nainital.”
He said the battle for the ticket for Tehri Garhwal would also be intense.
“Pritam Singh, former state Congress chief Kishor Upadhyay and former cabinet minister Soorvir Singh Sajwan are in the race for Tehri Garhwal. Sajwan returned to the party in July last year.”
Harish Rawat is keen on the ticket for the Haridwar seat, the leader said.
“Apart from Rawat, party vice president Brahm Swaroop Brahmchari and senior leader Sanjay Paliwal, considered close to Pritam Singh, are in the race.
“It is likely that Singh would throw his weight behind Paliwal, who was credited for the party’s mayoral win in Haridwar in the recently held urban local bodies’ polls.”
At least four leaders, he said, have set their eyes on the Pauri Garhwal seat.
“The four are former cabinet minister and ex-MLA from Kotdwar Surendra Singh Negi, party’s state media convener and former cabinet minister Dhirendra Pratap Singh and former legislators Rajendra Singh Bhandari and Ganesh Godiyal. It seems that Negi will win the race.”
The leader said, “Tamta and former legislators Rajendra Barakoti and Narayan Ram are keen on contesting from the Almora seat.”
Asked if Harish Rawat is vying for a ticket for general elections, his spokesperson Surendra Singh said, “These are all speculations but if the party wants him to fight from any seat, he (Rawat) would fight; if the party asks him to support any candidate, he would do that also.”
When contacted on probable candidates for the five seats, Pritam Singh said he can’t comment on speculations.
“Party’s parliamentary board will take the final decision on tickets. There is a process for getting tickets, which will be followed by every leader of the party,” Singh said.
