Bade miyan, chhote miyan

Issues relating to the welfare of the ex-servicemen dominate the elections in Pauri Garhwal constituency which is dominated by army men.

Khanduri, who had won the seat for the last two terms, has a formidable rival this time. Pauri Garhwal constituency, spread over Pauri Garhwal, Chamoli, Rudraprayag and Dehra Dun districts, has been sending its men to the Army for practically a century now. Almost every family in the region has at least one member in the Army or paramilitary forces.

To appeal to this big votebank, the Congress is raking up the issue of ‘one rank one pension’. For years now the ex-servicemen have been demanding that the pension be the same for each rank. At present, the pension is allocated according to the year the serviceman retired. Khanduri, in turn, blamed the Congress for not doing enough on the issue except blaming the BJP. ‘‘We have supported ‘one rank one pension’ and were instrumental in giving a one time hike despite objections from the the Fifth Pay Commission. Even we have formed a committee of secretaries to look into other issues,’’ he said.

But both Khanduri and Rawat maintain that they are not happy at the way their fight is being seen as a battle between Generals. ‘‘It is a political fight between rival political parties and mentioning it as a clash between two Generals is unfortunate,’’ says Khanduri. Rawat shares his opinion.

The issues of rehabilitation a large number of soldiers killed in J&K and the Northeast is also an issue in this election. While, Kargil martyrs were compensated handsomely, the same cannot be said of the soldiers killed in other areas. ‘‘We have different categories of compensation to Army personnel killed in different conditions and it was for the first time in last half a century that this system has been in place due to our efforts,’’ says Khanduri.

In the past Lok Sabha polls, Khanduri’s clean image and reputation of being a go-getter helped him win. Not taking any chances, the Congress this time has decided to field a senior retired general who also commands loyalty in the area.