Amitabh Shukla | Kangra
For long Shanta Kumar was the
undisputed leader of Himachal Pradesh BJP and is still widely regarded as the
archetype of traditional politics in which ideology and clean image are the
main assets of a candidate.
He retired from active politics
sometime ago but has been persuaded one last time by the Central leadership to
contest from Kangra so that the party repeats its performance of 3-1 in 2009 in 2014 polls as well if not
4-0. “If you want Kangra on world map, vote for Shanta as he would be a Cabinet
Minister in the Narendra Modi Government,” this is the common refrain of his
election managers in the entire constituency. The BJP candidate himself tells
the voters to make him victorious one last time.
What Hamirpur is to Prem Kumar
Dhumal, Mandi is to Virbhadra Singh, it is Shanta Kumar all the way in not only
in Kangra valley but also the upper reaches, surrounded by the magnificent
Dhauladhar range snow-peaked mountains. He has been a two-time Chief Minister
of the State and one of those leaders who made the party reach every nook and
corner of the hill State ever since the Jan Sangh days.
Even though Kumar’s personal
integrity and appeal is never questioned even by his Congress rivals, BJP did
badly in 2012 Assembly polls in his stronghold. This factor is worrying the
party now. Out of the 17 Assembly segments, Congress won 13 and BJP only three.
This resounding defeat in Kangra forced BJP to bite dust in the Assembly polls.
So, for the 79-year old BJP veteran, it is time for redemption and time to bring
back the old glory. In 2013, Kumar and Dhumal were at loggerheads on selection
of candidates resulting in several rebels and loss for the BJP. This time, they
are united, standing under a common umbrella and that is making Narendra Modi
the Prime Minister of the country.
Shanta Kumar is pitted against
Chander Kumar of Congress who won in 2004 but lost in 2009. Chander Kumar hails
from the OBC community which is in good numbers here unlike other
constituencies of the State. The other main castes are Rajputs and Brahmins.
But ask the candidates and others and they will tell you that caste was never a
factor here nor is it a factor in this election even though the Congress
candidate is raising the issue and his caste origins. Shanta Kumar is a Brahmin
and so is Rajan Sushant, the Aam Aadmi Party candidate who won the 2009 polls
on a BJP ticket. Sushant started targeting the BJP leaders consistently,
particularly Prem Kumar Dhumal soon after his victory in the Lok Sabha polls.
In his election meetings, Shanta
Kumar says that Sushant is a candidate “hired” by Chief Minister Virbhadra
Singh to target him. He tells the people convincingly that in the 2009 polls,
he argued with the central leadership of BJP and got the party ticket for
Sushant. Then the veteran says that in the 2012 polls, three factors have
ensured that it would be a Modi-led Government in the Centre. According to him,
these are “inflation, corruption and black deeds” of the UPA Government. More
than the local issue, he is raising the problems which the country is facing
and how Modi could solve the problems of the country and Himachal Pradesh.
Interestingly, Kangra is the only
constituency in the State where Congress has left its candidate to fend for
himself. Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh has not campaigned the way he has done
in other constituencies and neither have the MLAs put all their efforts. In
fact, he praised Shanta Kumar repeatedly in his meetings saying he was an
honest man. This forced Chander Kumar to approach the Chief Minister saying
that if he continued praising his rival, how could the party pose a fight?
“The contribution of Shanta is
immense. The drinking water facility in the area was due to his efforts. His
public life has been an example for the politicians,” said Naresh Thakur, owner
of Thakur Dhaba near the old city of Kangra .
Another resident of Palampur, Ujjwal Sharma says the contrast between the three
contestants is too stark. “There is no comparison between Shanta Kumar and
Chander Kumar. One is there for public service, the other is a professional
politician who wants to use this as a launching pad.” Shanta Kumar himself
targets the UPA Government in all his speeches, lists its range of corruption
and incompetence and weaves a dream for the future of the state and the country
under Narendra Modi.
The Congress candidate himself
has nothing much to say except that Shanta Kumar has “done nothing” in his
years as Chief Minister and Union Minister. Chander Kumar targets former CM
Prem Kumar Dhumal and his son Anurag for alleged corruption. He also lists the
achievements of the Central Government and promises to bring rail line if a UPA
Government is formed. Beyond that he has no promises to make, no plans to share
with the people, resulting in a negative campaign.
Despite BJP doing badly in the
last Assembly polls from here, getting the veteran Shanta Kumar to contest has
given the momentum to the party. Most of those who contested as rebels and
those who had joined the Himachal Lokhit Party are now supporting the election efforts
of the BJP veteran. “It will only be a miracle which can help the Congress
candidate in this election,” summed up a hotelier in Dharamsala. (May 6, 2014 )
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