Representational Image  |  Photo Credit: PTI
Dehradun: Uttarakhand will witness a gruelling, three-cornered electoral battle among the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Congress on February 14. The results will be declared on March 10.
The voting will be held in a single phase for 70 Assembly constituencies in the hill state.
Ever since the formation of Uttarakhand in 2000, BJP and Congress have ruled the state on an alternate basis. However, this time, debutant AAP is expected to pose a formidable challenge to the two political heavyweights.
Here are five key contests to watch out for in Uttarakhand:
Pushkar Singh Dhami vs Bhuwan Chandra Kapri – Khatima
Uttarakhand chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami will take on his old rival and Congress leader Bhuwan Chandra Kapri for the Khatima constituency. Though Dhami is on a two-time winning streak from this seat, it will be interesting to see how he would fare against Kapri this time.
In Uttarakhand, retaining their traditional seat proves to be a monumental task for chief ministers in Assembly elections. Many former CM’s of Uttarakhand had lost following completing their tenure as State Chief Minister.
Harish Rawat vs Mohan Singh Bisht – Lalkuwa
Former Uttarakhand chief minister and Congress stalwart Harish Rawat has been pitted against BJP’s Mohan Singh Bisht from the Lalkuwa seat. Rawat, who lost state Assembly polls of 2017 and Lok Sabha polls of 2019, is hoping to be back on the winning track. While Pawan Chauhan, who was denied a ticket by the BJP, is now contesting as an independent candidate from this seat.
Ajay Kothiyal vs Vijaypal Singh Sajwan vs Suresh Chauhan – Gangotri
The battle of Gangotri was already a fierce one but the naming of Ajay Kothiyal as AAP’s chief ministerial candidate has raised stakes for the Assembly constituency in Uttarakhand.
This seat will see a triangular battle among Colonel (Retd) Ajay Kothiyal, Congress candidate Vijaypal Singh Sajwan and BJP leader Suresh Chauhan.
Manoj Rawat vs Shaila Rani Rawat – Kedarnath
Kedarnath will see the main battle between BJP’s Shaila Rani Rawat and Congress’ Manoj Rawat. However, AAP’s Suman Tiwari is also expected to give a tough fight to the heavyweights for this constituency.
It should be noted that Shaila Rani Rawat was among the nine Congress MLAs who had rebelled against the then Harish Rawat government in 2016.
Madan Kaushik vs Satpal Brahmchari – Haridwar
Uttarakhand BJP president Madan Kaushik will be up against Congress’ Satpal Brahmchari from the Haridwar seat. Madan Kaushik has not lost a single state election after the formation of the hill state. Satpal Brahmchari has served as a Nagar Palika chairman.