Gurgaon: The battle for the millennium city will be fought between BJP and AAP – the former representing the dominant Gujjars and the latter the dissatisfied among the middle class and lower middle class.
With the regional party, INLD, pitching a Meo Muslim and BSP trying to woo Gujjar votes, the contest assumes a wider base.
In Mewat which has three assembly segments and about 5 lakh voters, the Meo Muslim votes are likely to be divided among INLD’s Zakir Hussain, AAP’s Yogendra Yadav and Rao Dharampal of Congress. Rao Inderjit Singh of BJP may not be a major player, though he is expects to win the traditional votes.
Last time, Hussain almost swept the Mewat belt as a BSP candidate, garnering Dalit votes. But this time, Yadav and Dharampal could challenge his monopoly. The recent ultimatum of state Congress president Ashok Tanwar that each party MLA has to ensure the support of the party to the Lok Sabha candidate may improve its performance, which is likely to put some pressure on its MLA from Nuh, Aftab Ahmed, to garner Muslims votes.
In Badshapur, the fight is three-cornered, between BJP, AAP and Congress. So far, the urban belt has remained loyal to BJP. But with AAP gaining ground particularly in new Gurgaon, it may upset the balance.
Sohna is another interesting seat, where Meos and Gujjars are the two dominant groups. Local leaders across party lines feel that the fight here would be largely between Zakir and Dharampal.Â