Uttarakhand Assembly Election
Uttarakhand Election Result 2017
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has won a majority in the 70 seat-Uttarakhand assembly election, ousting the Congress led by chief minister Harish Rawat.
| Party | Won | Leading | Total |
| Bharatiya Janata Party | 57 | 0 | 57 |
| Indian National Congress | 11 | 0 | 11 |
| Independent | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Total | 70 | 0 | 70 |
Uttarakhand Assembly Elections 2017
Elections to the 70 seats of Uttarakhand legislative assembly are going to be held in early 2017. The Election Commission of India has not announced the date of election yet. It is likely to do so by November 2016. The BJP has already started campaigning aggressively for the upcoming Assembly elections. BJP national president Amit Shah sounded the poll bugle with his ‘Shankhnaad Rally’ in Haridwar. He appealed voters to remove the ‘corrupt’ Congress government and bring BJP to power to usher development in the state. Besides minor regional parties, the BJP, Congress and BSP are the main political contenders in this state.
Uttarakhand Election Results 2017 Constituency wise
| Constituency | Winner/Leading | Trailing/Runnerup |
|---|
About Uttarakhand Elections
Elections to the state’s first Legislative Assembly were held in 2002. For the first election in the state, 28 political parties including national, state and registered parties participated, with 927 contestants in the fray. The number of electors was 52,70,375, out of which 54.34% cast their votes. Since then, Uttarakhand has held regular elections to the Legislative Assembly.
The last assembly elections were held in 2012. Polling was conducted in all 70 constituencies in single phase. The Indian National Congress won 32 seats while the BJP got 31. Although it did not secure majority, the Congress emerged as the single largest party and formed government by allying with the PDF. Congress member Vijay Bahaguna was appointed the chief minister. After Bahaguna’s resignation, Harish Rawat became the state’s new chief minister in 2014.
With nine Congress MLAs resigning from the party, main opposition BJP made a failed attempt at toppling the government in Uttarakhand. It imposed President’s rule in the state in March 2016 which was later revoked by the Supreme Court of India.
Assembly Constituencies in Uttarakhand
Uttarakhand has 70 state assembly constituencies out of which 13 are reserved for candidates belonging to scheduled castes and 2 are reserved for candidates belonging to scheduled tribes.
Some of the constituencies in the state are Purola, Yamnotri, Gangotri, Badrinath, Karnprayag, Kedarnath, Rudraprayag, Deoprayag, Ghanshali, Narendranagar, Pratapnagar, Tehri, Dhanolti, Chakrata, Vikasnagar, Dharampur, Rishikesh, Hardwar, Roorkee,Pauri, Yamkeshwar, Gangolihat, Nainital, Bageshwar, Almora, Lohaghat, Haldwani, Kaladhungi, Kashipur, Rudrapur, Khatima, and Nanak Matta .
Issues of the State
Uttarakhand was formed in November, 2000 in response to demands for a separate state to address the unique needs and requirements of the hill people. But ever since the state came into being, it has been mired in political instability with only one government able to complete a full five year term in the last 16 years. While the demand for branching out from Uttar Pradesh was valid, the purpose for its creation has not been served yet. Uttarakhand’s people want sustainable development, livelihoods and infrastructure that is equipped to handle ecological disasters that the region is prone to. Instead, unemployment remains high and the vulnerability to ecological disasters has only increased. While the state is rich in minerals, irregular mining has made the hill region more prone to floods, landslides and related natural disasters, causing immense damage to life and property.
State Legislative Assembly
Uttarakhand has a unicameral legislature comprising one house only, that is, the State Legislative Assembly, which is also known as the Vidhan Sabha. The assembly consists of 70 directly elected members and one nominated member from the Anglo Indian community. The members of the state assembly are elected every five years. The total number of constituencies in the state is 70. The seat of the Legislative Assembly is at state capital Dehradun. Uttarakhand is represented in Indian Parliament by five directly elected members of the Lok Sabha and three indirectly elected members of the Rajya Sabha. The Speaker of the current Legislative assembly is Govind Singh Kunjwal. Harish Rawat is the chief minister and Krishan Kant Paul is the Governor of the state.