Candidates give personal touch to campaigning
HARIDWAR: As the day to cast votes for the Lok Sabha election nears, the candidates have started using different strategies, such as holding nukkad sabhas (street meetings) to frying samosas, interacting with roadside eateries, to clicking selfies with voters and party cadre,to reach out to people in Haridwar, according to political analyst.
Apart from election rallies and campaigning on social media, the candidates have started reaching out to voters personally by interacting with them and holding door-to-door meetings
Congress candidate Virendra Rawat, son of veteran Congress, leader Harish Rawat, wished voters on the first day of Navratri and sought blessings from women senior citizen voters.
“It is natural that voters get connected better when we meet them physically. As a candidate we want to cover the whole constituency and meet maximum voters. If during election campaign, I get some time to explore something different then it makes the routine campaign a bit interesting,” he said while frying Kachori at a Kankhalbased kachori shop.
Meanwhile, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate Trivendra Singh Rawat has reached out to public by clicking selfies with party workers, interacting with youth and womenfolk.
“Certainly social media has made major inroads whether it is our daily life or election. However, on-foot campaign still has its own impact and significance. The more you meet different people the more experience one gets. Interaction and convincing personally is better done during direct campaigning,” Rawat said whileclicking a selfie with the women wing at Jwalapur.
While Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) candidate Maulana Kazmi is meeting voters in rural markets, roadside areas and sharing his interactions on social media, independent candidate Umesh Kumar has started holding nukkad sabhas.
Reacting to sudden increase in social media activity by the Lok Sabha candidates, political analyst Sunil Kumar Batra pointed out that on-foot campaign is still considered best as candidate personally meets voters at their homes and workplaces.
“As there are over a dozen assembly segments here, candidates are making efforts to ensure maximum voters are reached. By frying samosas or interacting with tea vendors or sitting at roadside eateries, they are trying to portray themselves as close to the common man,” he added.