DEHRADUN: Election enthusiasm is increasing across the country, and the hill state of Uttarakhand is not left out. Voting for the five seats in Uttarakhand is scheduled for April 19, in the first phase of elections. Wednesday marked the deadline for filing nominations, with Saturday set as the final day for withdrawal of candidatures. A total of 56 candidates are vying for the five parliamentary seats in the state.
Here, although the main contest was considered to be between the Congress and BJP, the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) has now stepped in unexpectedly. BSP has suddenly become a third player in the competition by fielding candidates in all five seats.
The move by BSP has distressed the calculations of Congress in Haridwar and Tehri. However, the grand old party is hopeful, despite the dominance of BJP which add to the challenges.
Political analyst and social activist Anoop Nautiyal expressed optimism on BSP's significant involvement.
"Despite not securing any seats in the state during the last Lok Sabha elections, the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) wielded considerable influence through their substantial vote share," he said.
In two out of five seats, BSP candidates had garnered more votes than the winning margin. This suggests that if these votes had gone to other candidates, the results could have been altered.
Speaking to TNIE, author and analyst Jai Singh Rawat said, "Since the inception of Uttarakhand as a state, the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) has consistently held the position as the third-largest party in terms of both vote share and parliamentary seats".
Following the state's formation, in the first legislative assembly elections held in 2002, apart from BJP and Congress, the BSP displayed a notable performance, winning seven seats and garnering 10.79% of the votes.
According to data, BSP's share of votes in parliamentary elections from Uttarakhand over the past 20 years has been as follows: 6.8% in 2004, 15.2% in 2009, 4.8% in 2014, and 5.3% in 2019.