Ailing Rawat files nomination for bypoll through proposers

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posted on 10 years ago — updated on 1 second ago

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Uttarakhand Chief Minister Harish Rawat, who is recuperating from a neck injury at AIIMS in Delhi, today filed his nomination papers through his two proposers from Dharchula Assembly seat which goes to bypoll on July 21.

Rawat's wife Renuka, his Cabinet colleague Yashpal Arya, ex-MP from Almora Predeep Tamta, Congress Rajya Sabha member Mahendra Singh Mahara, former Dharchula MLA Harish Dhami, were present on the occasion. "Two sets of nomination papers were presented on behalf of Harish Rawat. One was presented by Harish Dhami and another by Pradiman Singh Garbiyal, and both sets were accepted for scrutiny," said Pramod Kumar, Assistant Returning Officer and SDM of Dharchula.

"The nomination papers were filed by the proposers of the candidate as the election rules permit and the affidavit given by candidate was read out before the returning officer. It will be presented by proposers before the date of withdrawal of names," Kumar said. It is mandatory for Rawat who took over as the chief minister on February 1 this year to make it to the state Assembly within 6 months of being sworn in. He represented Haridwar seat in the last Lok Sabha at the time of being nominated as the chief minister.

Rawat was denied permission by the doctors at AIIMS to come to Uttarakhand for filing his nomination papers. The Dharchula seat which fell vacant after Congress MLA Harish Dhami resigned on June 10 last month, paving the way for the chief minister to contest from there. It goes to poll on July 21 along with Doiwala and Someshwar seats.

"The seat is considered safe for chief minister as it was only assembly seat which withstood the Modi wave in Lok Sabha elections last month by giving Congress over 2,900 votes lead," said MD Joshi, Congress spokesperson from Dehradun. Earlier there was speculation that Rawat would contest from Doiwala, an assembly seat falling within his Lok Sabha constituency of Haridwar.

But Rawat eventually chose to contest from Dharchula in the light of the fact that BJP had stolen a march over Congress by over 20,000 votes to bag the Haridwar seat in the Parliamentary polls. Bypoll to Doiwala and Someshwar seats were necessitated after sitting MLAs from these seats - former chief minister Ramesh Pokhariyal Nishank and Ajay Tamta respectively were elected to the 16th Lok Sabha.