Three States and a Poll

Of the state8217;s 60 constituencies, 41 are in the four valley districts and 19 in the five hill districts. The valley, though small in area, has the maximum population dominated by the Meiteis, and is the scene of much frenetic campaigning. In the hills, Churachandpur presents a smorgasbord of ethnic tribes and cultures. All six constituencies are represented by Kuki politicians. The other hill districts are Naga-dominated, and election campaigning is muted.

This election is being regarded as the most important in the state8217;s political history. The Congress8217;s return to power will mean two more years of benevolence from the Centre, till general elections. Also, key issues like the lifting of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act, a lasting decision on the state8217;s boundaries, infrastructural development, answers to the decades-old insurgency and commercial boosts are expected from whoever comes to power, as Manipur8217;s voters attempt to catch up with the rapid economic strides being taken in the rest of the country.

MAIN PARTIES

Manipur People8217;s Party, BJP, Congress, RJD, CPI.

ISSUES

Manipur People8217;s Party: Get the Armed Forces Special Powers Act AFSPA, 1958, lifted from the state. Special attention to indigenous culture and language.

BJP: Territorial integrity, lift AFSPA. Set up inquiry commissions to probe the ISKCON blast, and killings of prominent personalities.

Cong: Increase state8217;s plan allocation. Improve highways and begin work on a railway connection to mainland.

BIG NAMES

8211; Chief Minister O Ibobi Singh Cong in Khangabok and Thoubal constituencies

8211; Former chief minister Radhavinod Koijam NCP in Thangmeiband

8211; Former chief minister RK Dorendro MPP in Yaiskul

BIG FIGHTS

8211; Ibobi Singh vs MPP8217;s L Jatra Singh in Khangabok, from where Ibobi was elected in 2002. Already, Congress and MPP workers have clashed several times.

8211; Congress vs Independent Naga candidates in the Naga districts of Senapati and Ukhrul

DIRT POOR 8216;ELVIS8217;

HERE8217;S a candidate who is wearing his poverty on his sleeve. Aribam Jagdish Sharma, 36, a filmmaker and singer, is contesting from Yaiskul constituency in Imphal East as an independent and is campaigning in a torn jacket and muddy shoes. To save money, he uses a bicycle and has requested no security from the government as that comes at a cost. 8220;I have been recently sponsored by the Samata Party. They gave me some money for my campaign expenses. My focus is on roads, drainage, water supply, electricity,8221; says Sharma, who is well-known for singing Elvis numbers, so much so that many call him the Elvis of Manipur. He is pitted against former CM RK Dorendro, but is unfazed. 8220;I returned here as an environmentalist after working in Mumbai for years. I have been deeply frustrated by the system. I have no money, no strategy,8221; he grins, as he draws his election symbol, a kite, with charcoal on a piece of cloth. 8220;I made one earlier but the rain washed it off.8221;

CAMPAIGNING

During polls, one can often spot women going to their candidate8217;s home bearing gifts like rice, vegetables and fruits. They then set about cooking lunch and soon the candidate and his supporters join them for a feast.

8212; One tradition which poll-watchers here say is dying is that of the neighbourhood carrom corner. In every leikai neighbourhood, small lean-tos are set up with carrom boards for the campaigners and volunteers. In the evening the candidates supply food and liquor, which makes for much partying.

Kartyk Venkatraman

Constituencies: 60

Polling stations: 2053

Candidates: 318

Electorate: 17,06,646

Polling stations with less than 1001 electors: 1501

Hypersensitive polling stations: 720

Sensitive polling stations: 1333

Ist Phase polling over: 19 seats

Political parties: BSP, BJP, CPI, CPIM, Congress, NCP, Manipur People8217;s Party MPP

Security: Approx 150 companies of paramilitary forces for first phase

Minimum security: 2 armed sections per polling station

UTTARAKHAND

THIS is the hill state8217;s second Assembly poll. The Congress led by veteran leader chief minister Narain Datt Tiwari hopes to win again, riding on the developmental works the state government initiated in the past five years. The BJP8212;dubbed 8220;the friendly Opposition8221; for its failure to nail the Tiwari government in these five years, is now going all out with its attack. It was, it says, a swing of less than two per cent of the popular vote in the 2002 polls that had led to its defeat and this time it hopes to reverse its fortunes.

On the other hand, other smaller regional parties have also launched an aggressive campaign against both the Congress and the BJP, calling them two sides of the same coin.

MAIN PARTIES

Congress, BJP and Uttarakhand Kranti Dal UKD

ISSUES

Congress: Vote us and the development continues. The party is touting its achievements8212;providing jobs to thousands of youths, attracting Rs 20,000 crore investment and making Uttarakhand one of the favoured industrial destinations.

BJP: Will check official corruption.

UKD: Local party for local people and local issues.

Big Names

8211; Former chief minister Nityanand Swami BJP, contesting from Laxman Chowk in Dehra Dun district

8211; Former CM and Uttarakhand BJP chief Bhagat Singh Koshiyari BJP; contesting from Kapkot in Bageshwar district

8211; Uttarakhand PWD and information minister Indira Hariydesh Cong, from Haldwani

BIG FIGHTS

8211; Former chief minister Nityanand Swami BJP vs Congress8217; Dinesh Aggarwal in Dehra Dun

8211; PWD 038; information minister Indira Hariydesh vs former minister Banshi Dhar Bhagat in Haldwani

Pati, Patni 038; Politics

Senior leader Munna Singh Chauhan is the BJP8217;s candidate from Vikasnagar but it is an independent candidate from neighbouring Chakrata who is causing him more trouble. That8217;s because the candidate is his wife Madhu Chauhan who quit her government job recently to join politics. The BJP asked Munna Singh to convince his wife to drop out of the race, Madhu refused and a tired Munna Singh announced that since his wife was not a member of the BJP, 8220;she cannot be pressured to withdraw.8221;

Other couples too have taken their fight to the streets. Deepti, wife of sitting BSP legislator Premanand Mahajan from Gadarpur-Pantnagar is up against her husband. In Ramnagar, BSP candidate Kishori Lal faces his wife and independent candidate Rama Devi.

SMA KAZMI

Constituencies: 70

Polling stations: 7491

Candidates: 836

Electorate: 60,42,628

Sensitive polling stations: 1059

Hypersensitive polling stations: 838

Highest polling booth Gangotri above 10,000 ft

Recognised parties: BSP, BJP, CPI, CPIM, Congress, NCP, SP, Uttarakhand Kranti Dal

Security: 18,000 police, 6,000 home guards, 65 companies of paramilitary forces

Minimum security per 1 for normal, 4 for sensitive polling station and 7 for hyper sensitive

PUNJAB

AS Punjab races to the February 13 contest, there8217;s no clear winner in sight. Voters of the agrarian state, who don8217;t shy away from wearing their loyalties on their kurtas, are giving both the ruling Congress and its archrival, the Shiromani Akali Dal B-BJP alliance, sleepless nights by shrugging off traditional loyalties.

The Congress, which had won by a wafer thin majority in the 2002 polls, is fighting with its back to the wall in the three border districts of Majha and four prosperous districts of Doaba where the Akali-BJP alliance seems to have gained ground. But it appears to have engineered a turnaround of sorts in the Akali heartland of Malwa, which has 65 seats, with at least three out of 12 districts swearing by CM Capt Amarinder Singh for introducing Bt seeds. The vote-for-Congress edict issued by the head of Sirsa-based Dera Sacha Sauda, which has numerous women devotees in Malwa, is also being considered significant.

But the large number of rebels in the ruling party as well as the widespread discontent amongst industrialists in Ludhiana who have for once expressed open support for Badal will also play a role in Malwa. Add to it the number of small parties in the fray who have the potential to play spoilers in certain constituencies, and you have elections that could go either way.

MAIN PARTIES

Cong and SAD B-BJP alliance

ISSUES

If the 2002 elections were fought on the single plank of corruption, the present polls are being contested on a wide canvas of issues such as development, price rise, unemployment and rural indebtedness. SAD B is promising atta at Rs 2 a kg and dal at Rs 20. Farmers are sore with the government for billing them for power and water.

CROREPATI BRIGADE

8211; Richest candidate: Former SGPC chief Bibi Jagir Kaur Has assets worth Rs 89 crore

8211; No of candidates with assets over Rs 5 crore: 45

8211; Capt Amarinder Singh: Rs 50.71 crore

8211; Former CM Parkash Singh Badal: Rs 9.2 cr

CRIME FILE

8211; Candidates with criminal records: 74

8211; Charged with murder: 4

8211; Charged under Obscenity Act: 1

IN DEBT

8211; Sunil Jhakar Cong: Owes Rs 2.97 crore

CANDIDATES WITHOUT PAN CARDS

8211; 300

NO OF SCHOOL DROPOUTS

8211; 155

AGEWISE

8211; Senior citizens: 102

8211; Young brigade lt;35: 62

8211; Oldest candidate: Parkash S Badal 76, SAD B, Lambi

8211; Youngest candidate: Ashu Arora 25, DBSP, Amritsar North

Campaigning

8211; Jasbir Singh Dimpa, Congress, came to file his nomination for Beas in a procession with camels, elephants and horses. Unfortunately, he got late and had to return the next day for the work.

8211; Surjit Singh Kohli of the SAD B-BJP candidate, who is taking on Capt Amarinder Singh in Patiala, canvasses on a scooter.

8211; Three father-son duos in the poll fray, including Capt Kanwaljit Singh of SADB, and number 2 in the party and his son Jasjit Singh; SAD A chief Simranjit Singh Mann and his son Emman Singh Mann.

8211; NRIs here for campaigning: 4,000. Prominent among them is Darshan Singh Dhaliwal, who owns 1,500 gas stations in the US. His brother Surjit Singh Rakhra, a SAD B-BJP candidate from Samana is the second-richest amongst all the candidates.

BIG NAMES, BIG FIGHTS

8211; CM Capt Amarinder Singh vs Surjit Singh Kohli of SAD-BJP combine plus 16 others.

8211; Former CM and SAD B supremo Parkash Singh Badal vs cousin Mahesh Inder Singh of Congress in native Lambi.

8211; Bibi Jagir Kaur vs Sukhpal Singh Khaira in Bholath

8211; PCC president Shamsher Singh Dullo vs Bikramjit Singh Khalsa in Khanna. Dullo is projecting himself as the next CM

8211; Congress candidate Jaspal Singh Khangura, an Oxford graduate and owner of Ludhiana8217;s first five-star hotel who surrendered his British citrizenship to fight for Kila Raipur.

8211; SAD A chief Simranjeet Singh Mann, a former IPS officer who quit the service in protest against Op Bluestar, vs SAD B-BJP8217;s G S Longowal and Congress8217; Kuldeep Singh Dhanula from Dhanaula.

Manraj Grewal

Constituencies: 117

Polling stations : 16,751

Candidates: 1050

Electorate: 1.69 crore

Hypersensitive polling stations: 1034

Sensitive polling stations: 4797

Political parties: Congress, Akali Dal B, BJP, CPIM, CPI, Akali Dal A, LBJP

Security: deployed 200 companies of paramilitary forces