Harish Rawat in do-or-die battle against 'Shamshan bandhu'

Tribune News Service

Shubhadeep Choudhury

Haldwani, February 8

“Dulhan wahi jo piya man bhaye (nothing else matters if groom likes the bride),” says former Uttarakhand CM Harish Rawat with a twinkle in his eye when asked who would hold the top post if the Congress manages to form the government in Uttarakhand.

Contesting from Lalkuan constituency in Nainital, Rawat is being seen as a frontrunner for the CM’s post should the Congress secure a majority in the 70-member Assembly.

Being the natural choice for the top post should give any candidate a huge electoral advantage, but the familiar script doesn’t seem to be playing out in Lalkuan. Rawat, who contested from Haridwar Rural and Kichha seats in 2017 and lost both, is facing a tough challenge from BJP’s Mohan Singh Bisht.

Fondly called “Mohan-da” in the neighbourhood, Bisht is primarily known for turning up for cremation whenever anyone passes away in the area. The effectiveness of this unique public-relations strategy was demonstrated when Bisht contested the zila panchayat elections in 2019 and won by a huge margin.

“We call him ‘Shamshan bandhu’ (funeral friend),” says Jagdish Chand of Bachchinawar village near Haldwani. Puran Singh, an accountant at a school in Gangarampur village, says Bisht has photographic memory and knows innumerable people by their first name. “He knows me too by my name. If he becomes an MLA and I tell someone the legislator of my constituency knows me personally, I will not be lying,” he asserts.

Rawat was initially named the Congress candidate from Ramnagar, but he shifted to Lalkuan even though the party had nominated Sandhya Dalakoti. An angered Sandhya has thrown the hat in the ring as an Independent.

The BJP too denied the ticket to sitting MLA Navin Chandra Dumka. But he humbly accepted the party’s decision and is even campaigning for Bisht. ‘Mohan-da’ is probably among a handful of BJP candidates who have their own identity and are not depending on PM Narendra Modi’s popularity for drawing support, maintains an analyst.

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