Angry rebels with clout: Parties have a fight on their hands

The family and supporters of the BJP rebel in Shalimar Bagh, K.K. Agarwal, are busy preparing banners and posters with his new symbol, the bigul. Agarwal had been an RSS worker for more than 30 years.

A BJP strong-hold, local BJP workers and office-bearers pay a visit to BJP candidate Ramnath Bansal’s camp and then troop down to Agarwal’s office to assure support.

Three other independents have withdrawn their names in support of Agarwal. “Though the BJP claims it is for them, I have withdrawn my name for Agarwal,” says B.M. Wig, senior vice president, BJP Shalimar Bagh Mandal. For the common voter, the price rise has stung and has not left him/her with an alternative. “We are open to him. Let him come and talk to us. We are not happy with the Congress or the BJP,” says Suresh Joshi, vice president of the local market association.

According to the residents, if Agarwal had got a ticket from the BJP, he would have won much more easily than Ramnath Bansal. “We know that for the BJP, even Advaniji will come and campaign. But we are confident that we will manage as Agarwal is known all over,” said a party worker.

“It is better that we get a local candidate rather than somebody who will become chief minister and not care about us,” said another local resident, referring to former chief minister Sahib Singh Verma.

In Rajender Nagar, rebel Congress candidate Brahm Yadav is on a strong wicket and has pulled out all stops in his poll campaign. His new symbol is a tap even though he still has the Congress board outside his residence. “I was a third-generation Congress worker. But when I was not given a ticket, the workers asked me to contest as an independent,” said Yadav.

He is believed to have a strong influence in all the JJ clusters in the area and the two villages of Todapur and Dasgara. As 88 out of 136 polling booths are in villages, resettlement colonies and JJ clusters, he is confident of victory.

“He held a massive rally in the morning and I even managed to hug him,” says Kallu, a tailor in the JJ cluster.

The Congress has fielded Ram Ashish who was originally in the Janata Dal and is supposed to be a Meira Kumar loyalist. “If the image of a candidate is taken into consideration, Yadav is the best. The sitting MLA did nothing about the acute electricity problem. People are angry with him,” said another.

Yadav is expected to do very well as he has the support of those who matter the JJ residents who come out of their houses and vote.

In the narrow bylanes of Seelampur, there is an overwhelming sympathy for sitting MLA Matin Ahmed, who was denied a ticket by the Congress. Earlier talk of him not doing much for the constituency is forgotten as the locals now make a martyr out of him.

Says Mansoor Alam Siddiqui, a potential voter from his constituency: “He did his best for the constituency as well as the party, but he did not get anything in return. Though he is contesting as an independent, we will ensure his victory.”

The Congress candidate here is Salaudin Pehalwan, also a Muslim and the contest, it seems, is just between the two of them. The constituency has 1.8 lakh voters, out of which nearly 70 per cent are Muslims.

BJP rebel candidate has been abducted by RSS’ the BJP rebel candidate from the Shalimar Bagh constituency, K K Agarwal, has apparently been missing since Tuesday morning. His supporters had claimed till yesterday that he had been abducted by the BJP. Today, they said that they have received reports that the RSS was responsible for Agarwal’s disappearance. Agarwal has been an RSS worker for nearly 30 years. His supporters said that they had not filed an FIR till this evening as they had received information that he was well. “The Shalimar Bagh SHO has said that there is no need to get worried as he is safe,” says R K Singla, one of his associates who feels that even the police are hand-in-glove with Agarwal’s abductors. “They are pressuring him to withdraw in favour of the BJP candidate.”

Agarwal’s family members said two BJP leaders came to see him the night before he disappeared to request him to withdraw from the contest. At 5.30 a.m. on Tuesday, Agarwal apparently left the house without saying anything. His family add they are more worried after yesterday’s murder.