Political temperatures soar in Mussoorie as campaigning picks pace

MUSSOORIE

: With elections just a few days away, the tempo of the polls is building up in the queen of hills. Candidates in the fray are pulling all stops to ensure they are able to catch the voters’ attention.


For instance, a young candidate Anuj Gupta, who is contesting as an independent after being ousted from the Congress, has resorted to popular Garhwali songs to reach out to the voters. His supporters claim that Gupta “doesn’t want to lose out on votes from the Garhwali community” since both his opponents — BJP’s OP Uniyal and Congress candidate Megh Singh Kandari — are from that region.

BJP candidate and one-time council president OP Uniyal meanwhile says that “gimmicks won’t impress voters.” “My focus is strongly on the local issues,” he told TOI.” While Monday saw former CM Ramesh Pokhriyal canvass for Uniyal in Mussoorie, Tuesday will witness CM Trivendra Rawat campaigning.

Meanwhile, Congress’s decision to field a young candidate has ruffled many a feathers. On his part, Kandari says he is “focused on my strength of having a clean image.” During his campaign, he makes it a point to appease others who were denied a ticket. “My focus is the well-being of the town and I am honoured that the party has showed confidence in me.”

Another independent candidate, Puran Singh Raunchela has hogged the limelight with his offbeat campaign. A video of Raunchela canvassing with a Chinese mike and two bananas (his party symbol) in hand has gone viral. In the video, he is seen telling voters that the other candidates will get only around 1,000 votes and he will sweep the elections.