Sunday, August 23, 2015
Battle for Darjeeling: Roshan Giri could have defeated Bhaichung Bhutia but SS Ahluwalia may not
Darjeeling went to the polls and the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) supported BJP’s SS Ahluwalia, who does not have any kind of connect with the Hills. This is in contrast to Trinamool Congress’s Bhaichung Bhutia, who although not from Darjeeling (he is a resident of Sikkim), has easily mingled with the crowd there but if Roshan Giri was in the fray (instead of Ahluwalia), things would have been different.
Bhaichung is not only popular as a footballer in Darjeeling but he is also considered a local boy, owing to the ethnic similarities between the people of Darjeeling and Sikkim.
Now, Ahluwalia is a total alien and if he has any chance of winning, it would be because of Gorkha Janmukti Morcha or GJM chief Bimal Gurung’s clout. Well, in fact, if Ahluwalia actually wins, it would clearly make a winner out of Gurung, the champion of the Gorkhaland cause.
It would indicate that people are for Gorkhaland and firmly believe that Gurung will get it this time. (Unlike the last time, when this promise went abegging).
But what if he fails to do so? Then the first question that would come to mind is whether Gurung and the BJP tie-up should have fielded a local candidate instead.
And the best suited would have been Roshan Giri, GJM general secretary. If Giri was the candidate instead of Ahluwalia, the GJM-BJP could have swept the polls in Darjeeling.
But bringing in Ahluwalia could spell trouble for the BJP and GJM and serve as an advantage for Bhaichung, who could win by a wafer-thin margin.
But let us assume the BJP-GJM fielded Giri. He would have not only been a pure local lad but also could have taken up the Gorkhaland cause with the Union government (which opinion polls say would be led by Narendra Modi) as a GJM representative actually in Parliament. But that was not to be.
The Hills people remember that Jaswant Singh was the Darjeeling MP and he hardly visited the Hills leave alone do something for the people there. And, Bhaichung could harp on this: That the BJP did precious little last time (with Gurung support) nor had Gorkhaland taken shape.
Bhaichung argues that instead of talking about a separate state, the Hills people should harp on development, which is a pragmatic solution which today's youths want.
So, Ahluwalia, with no local connect, could be seen as an outsider or intruder and this may come as a blessing for Bhaichung, who would have been nowhere had Roshan Giri been the contender.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment