Nainital: In one more addition to the spate of defections that has marked the run-up to elections in Uttarakhand, Farukh Khan, a Samajwadi Party leader in Ramnagar, joined the Congress on Tuesday. Commenting on the development, Ranjit Rawat, the Congress candidate from the assembly constituency, said, “Like-minded people who support development are coming together.”
Rawat added, "Ideology of the Congress party is one of development and inclusiveness without discrimination. Our government has done a lot for people here and will keep doing so with the help of Ramnagar residents.”
The inclusion of Khan could bring in some more of the Muslim votes into the Congress. "Voters will follow Farukh Khan as he has quite a following in the community and has worked a lot for them,” said Danish Khan, a local resident.
A curious contest is in the offing in the Nainital assembly seat, where sitting Congress MLA Sarita Arya will be fighting both anti-incumbency sentiments and her main rival, Sanjeev Arya, the son of former cabinet minister Yashpal Arya. The latter is trying hard to shed the “outsider” tag.
Both Yashpal Arya and son Sanjeev Arya had joined the BJP earlier this month from the Congress.
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