Ladakh all set for quadrilateral contest

Tribune News Service

Jammu, April 22

Ladakh, the country’s geographically largest parliamentary seat, on Monday finally set for a quadrilateral contest after one of the five candidates withdrew his nomination papers on the last day of withdrawal.

“With the withdrawal of one more nomination paper on the last day, there are now four candidates left in the fray,” Avny Lavasa, Returning Officer, Ladakh, told The Tribune.

The candidates left in the electoral race now are BJP’s Jamyang Tsering Namgyal, Congress’ Rigzin Spalbar, NC-PDP and influential Islamia School Kargil-backed Sajjad Hussain Kargili and Congress rebel Asgar Ali Karbalaie who is supported by a religious organisation Imam Khomeni Memorial Trust, Kargil. The polling will be held in the fifth phase on May 6.

Meanwhile, the BJP has decided to bring in its star campaigners in its efforts to retain the seat which it won for the first time during the 2014 polls when Thupstan Chhewang defeated Congress rebel Ghulam Raza by a margin of 36 votes.

For the time being, the BJP leadership has assigned responsibility to two Union ministers — Kiran Rijiju and Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi — to mobilise Buddhist and Shia voters of Leh and Kargil districts, respectively. Besides, the state unit has decided to request the high command to organise a mega rally of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

While Rijiju is a Buddhist from Arunachal Pradesh, Naqvi is a Shia Muslim.

On the contrary, the Congress is relying on its local leadership to campaign for its candidate.

Demographically, Ladakh has two districts — Buddhist-dominated Leh and Shia-majority Kargil.

2014 poll statistics

Victory margin just 36 votes

• Winner: Thupstan Chhewang (BJP) got 31,111 votes
• Runner-up: Ghulam Raza (Ind) secured 31,075 votes

1,18,029   Total votes polled

70.78   Voting percentage 

Sitting MP: Thupstan Chhewang (who resigned from the Lok Sabha and BJP on November 14, 2018)

Two districts: Buddhist-dominated Leh and Shia-majority Kargil

Four Assembly segments: Nubra, Leh, Kargil and Zanskar

Total voters: 1,74,967 (88,130 in Kargil and 86,837 in Leh)

Men voters: 89,856 Women voters: 85,108

Third gender voters: 3 First-time voters: 8,137