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Journalism of Courage
Voters of Badheth in the upper Himalayas love to be tagged fauji. Yet, they have little interest in UPA-2’s decision to accept “One Rank and One Pension” scheme for retired army personnel.
Badheth, 53 km from Pauri city, has sent at least one member from each house to the Army. Part of Pauri Garhwal constituency, it has 1,000-odd voters, including widows and pensioners.
In Badheth it is the faujis who matter for Uttarakhand’s two heavyweight politicians — former chief minister Major General (retired) B C Khanduri (BJP) and Harak Singh Rawat (Congress), the state’s minister for Sainik Kalyan (army welfare).
The Pauri Garhwal constituency constituency is spread over five of 13 Uttarakhand districts and has 14 Assembly segments. Sheer geography makes it difficult for BJP or Congress to develop a single plank for voters across Pauri. Congress faces anti-incumbency over alleged mismanagement in handling relief and rehabilitation efforts following the devastation triggered by a cloudburst last year.
“Will OROP enable us to see our children as commissioned officers in the Army?” asks says Govind Singh Negi who retired as JCO in 2007.
Badheth has one junior high school and students trek 4 km in the hills to reach either Guliyari or Chakisain village for high school and intermediate education to become eligible for recruitment in the Army. Vinod Singh Chauhan, a retired havildar, also feels OROP is not a political issue in these elections. “The timing of the announcement smacks of a Congress effort to woo ex-servicemen. But, retired faujis are more worried about their children,” Singh says.
Ram Singh Birsora, a retired armyman, says OROP won’t help the Congress get votes of retired faujis . “It is caste that now plays an important role,” he says hinting at the Congress’s efforts to polarise Thakur voters.
Pauri has a considerable presence of Thakurs. H S Rawat is a Thakur, and is a sitting MLA from Rudraprayag.
The BJP is aware of the damage that polarisation of Thakur votes can do to its candidate but is banking on the clean image of Khanduri, who has been elected MP four times. Khanduri dismisses caste as a factor. “My rivals have used this trick in the past but I won the elections,” he said.
