Garhwal Lok Sabha results 2019: BJP's Tirath Singh Rawat defeats Congress' Manish Khanduri

Result Update: BJP's Tirath Singh Rawat came out victorious against Congress' Manish Khanduri by 302669 votes in the Garhwal Lok Sabha constituency. 

The Garhwal Lok Sabha constituency in Uttarakhand came into existence in 1957 and comprises 14 assembly segments across five districts. It is one of the five Parliamentary constituencies in the state which came into existence in 2000. 

BJP’s Bhuwan Chandra Khanduri, a former chief minister of the state, defeated the Congress’s Harak Singh Rawat by close to two lakh votes in 2014 Lok Sabha elections. Khanduri first won the seat in 1991 and held it till 2007 when he had to resign after becoming Chief Minister of the state. He, however, won back the seat in 2014 when he defeated Harak Singh Rawat who later joined the BJP and is now an MLA from Garhwal and a state minister.

Satpal Maharaj, who won from Garhwal Lok Sabha seat in 2009 on a Congress ticket, is also now a BJP leader and is currently a minister in the state government. 

This time, while BC Khanduri, an Army veteran, had expressed his unwillingness to enter the poll fray citing ill health, his son Manish has been fielded by the Congress party. The BJP has nominated Tirath Singh Rawat from the seat. 

Apparently, Rawat is considered close to the sitting BJP MP and was elevated to the post of BJP’s state president in Uttarakhand in 2013 because of the backing from Khanduri.

Manish is trying to tap into the support base of his father in the constituency. A novice, junior Khanduri has his task cut out in the seat considered a stronghold of the BJP. He has been raising the issue of alleged mistreatment by BJP to his father and claims to have his blessings. 

"My father served the BJP with total honesty, but he was removed from important positions by the party towards the fag end of his career. He (Khanduri) is my father and I have his blessings. My fight is ideological," Manish Khanduri said after joining the Congress in presence of party president Rahul Gandhi at a rally last month. 

Gandhi had also raised the issue of the senior Khanduri's sudden removal as chairman of the parliamentary committee on defence, citing it as the reason behind Manish Khandhuri joining the grand old party.

An interesting poll battle is guaranteed in the Garhwal seat with BC Khanduri's son pitted against his political disciple.

Presently, Garhwal Lok Sabha constituency comprises the fourteen legislative assembly segments: Badrinath, Karnaprayag and Tharali of Chamoli district; Ramnagar of Nainital district; Chaubattakhal, Kotdwar, Lansdowne, Pauri, Srinagar and Yamkeshwar of Pauri Garhwal district; Kedarnath and Rudraprayag of Rudraprayag district; and Devprayag and Narendranagar of Tehri Garhwal district.

The polling in Garhwal will be held in the first phase of Lok Sabha elections on April 11. The results of the Lok Sabha election 2019 will be declared on May 23.