Dehra Dun: Former minister
and senior BJP leader Prakash Pant on Wednesday filed his nomination
for the upcoming Sitarganj Assembly by-polls through which Chief
Minister Vijay Bahuguna seeks an entry into the Vidhan Sabha.
Accompanied by former Chief Minister Bhagat Singh Koshiyari and party
state President Bishan Singh Chufal, Pant submitted his papers before
returning officer P C Dumka on the last day of filing nomination.
The party also organised a public meeting and carried out a poll
procession to garner support for Pant, who had lost in the recently
concluded Assembly elections from Pithoragarh.
Claiming that the BJP was
going to win the by-election with a "handsome margin", Koshiyari termed
the resignation by former party MLA Kiran Mandal in favour of Bahuguna
as a "treachery" with the people of the area who had voted for BJP.
He also termed the government's move to provide land ownership rights
to Bengali settlers in Sitarganj as an "eyewash" and urged the community
to itself judge the situation before voting for their choice.
Pant, who is also the former Assembly speaker, is being seen as
formidable candidate against Bahuguna, who seeks an entry into the House
through the July 8 election to meet the constitutional obligation of
becoming a legislator within 6 months of taking oath as the chief
minister.
The contest appears to be a keen one with both BJP and
Congress claiming they were going to pull this of in their favour.
While Bahuguna is banking upon a set of schemes "worth crores of
rupees" announced by the government after taking over, BJP too is in no
mood to let this opportunity go, party sources said.
PTI
No comments:
Post a Comment