By ARUN PRATAP SINGH
DEHRADUN, 29 Jan: In 70 assembly constituencies of Uttarakhand, more than 750 nominations have been filed, which means that more than 10 candidates might contest the polls on each seat on an average basis. A significant number of these candidates are those who had been denied ticket by their respective parties and have declared intention to contest as rebel and independent candidates. It remains a big challenge for both the parties to diffuse this rebellion and convince the rebel candidates to withdraw their names. In the BJP, this responsibility has been given to the party MPs as well as former Chief Ministers from the party. In the Congress, this responsibility lies solely on Harish Rawat, Yashpal Arya and Ganesh Godiyal’s shoulders. Interestingly, both the parties are reported to be finding it tough to convince the rebel party leaders to withdraw their nomination. Both the parties are attempting to assure the rebels that they would be adjusted somewhere in the party and the government once the party wins the assembly polls. In 10 seats of Dehradun district, there have been 144 nominations. However, both the parties are trying to minimise the rebellion and convince as many as possible rebel candidates to withdraw nominations. However, there is little time left for withdrawal of nominations after scrutiny is over and it remains to be seen how many rebels from each party are won back by the respective parties.
