India

Hitting campaign trail in water scarce Bundelkhand, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday blamed SP, BSP and Congress for backwardness of the region and promised to transform it like Kutch in Gujarat. Mineral-rich Bundelkhand, he said, can change the fate of Uttar Pradesh and satellites can help keep a check on illegal mining.

“SP and BSP have ignored Bundelkhand over the years and these elections are crucial for Bundelkhand…it has to decide whether it has to get rid of SP-BSP,” Modi said at an election rally in Orai region of Jalaun in Bundelkhand region.

“In five years, we will transform Bundelkhand, which has not seen any development in the last 70 years…mineral-rich Bundelkhand can change the fate of Uttar Pradesh, illegal mining has to be stopped and the satellite launched by India can be used to check the clandestine activities,” Modi said.

BJP has promised that if voted to power, an autonomous development board will be set up for the region and its working will be monitored on a weekly basis, he said.

Explaining his vision for the region, Modi cited the example of Kutch district of Gujarat.

“Some believe nothing can be done in Bundelkhand…it can be made No.1 in the state…there is Kutch district in Gujarat…20 years ago if any government staff was posted there, it was considered ‘kala pani’ (Andaman’s Cellular Jail),” he said.

The Prime Minister said population was dwindling there with no farming and water and people were migrating in search of greener pastures.

“But after the earthquake there, we stared working on it and today it is the most developing district in the country. This can be done here too if the intention is right and if one has the resolve,” he stressed.

The prime minister also said, “If Bundelkhand has to flourish, it will need two engines to pull it out of the mess -- the BJP government in UP and at the Centre.”

Convicted former RJD MP Mohammad Shahabuddin was on Saturday shifted from Siwan jail in Bihar to Tihar Central Jail in Delhi amid tight security as per the order of the Supreme Court.

Shahabuddin, the dreaded 50-year-old politician convicted in eight criminal cases and awaiting trial in over 30 others, was first taken out of Siwan jail early in the morning and brought to Beur Central Jail in Patna amid tight security. He was taken out of the Beur jail at 4 PM and taken to Rajendranagar railway station in Patna, where he boarded Sampoorna Kranti Express train along with a posse of police personnel to be taken to Delhi.

A large number of supporters of the former MP had gathered at Patna Junction railway station as word had got around that he would board a train from there. But the authorities brought him to Rajendranagar station to avoid inconvenience and security risks.

The authorities tried to keep the entire operation out of the media’s attention. Efforts were taken to ensure that there is no repetition of the scene of September 11 last year, when the don turned politician's emergence from Bhagalpur jail on bail was greeted with a huge gathering of his supporters.

During Beur jail transit, Shahabuddin was seen greeted by two notorious criminal-turned-politicians – Mokama MLA Anant Singh of the ruling JD (U) and Ritlal Yadav of RJD, an ally of JD (U).

“Singh and Yadav were very happy to know Shahabuddin was in this jail and they came out of their cells to offer their respects to the Siwan leader. The trio chatted for some time,” said a jail official.

Nearly 100 of Shahabuddin’s supporters had gathered outside Siwan jail since 2 AM after learning of the district administration’s plans to shift him out. When the cavalcade of jail and police vehicles carrying Shahabuddin started off the jail, the supporters followed in nearly 20 SUVs and other cars, besides about 50 motorcycles. The authorities stopped these vehicles at one place on the way and snatched the keys of at least ten cars, thus causing an argument with some of Shahabuddin’s supporters, said an official.

“He (Shahabuddin) is being shifted to Tihar jail in obedience to the order of the honourable Supreme Court. He was brought to Beur Jail from Siwan jail this morning,” said inspector general (prisons) Anand Kishore. Except the district magistrate and SP of Siwan and three senior officials including the inspector general (STF), nobody else knew about the shifting plans of Shahabuddin to ensure smooth operational procedures, he added.

The Supreme Court, acting on petitions filed by a man in Siwan whose three sons had been killed allegedly by Shahabuddin’s henchmen, had on February 15 directed the Bihar government to shift Shahabuddin to Tihar jail in a week to ensure free and fair trial in the cases lodged against him. Trial of the pending cases, the top court directed, would be conducted through video conferencing.

With the Supreme Court breathing down its neck, Uttar Pradesh Police on Saturday filed an FIR against tainted senior minister Gayatri Prajapati in connection with cases of alleged gangrape and attempt to rape a woman and her minor daughter.

The apex court had yesterday directed the police to book the minister, who is a senior leader of the ruling Samajwadi Party.

Circle Officer of Hazratganj, Avanish Kumar Mishra, said the FIR was lodged against the cabinet minister and six of his accomplices under various sections of the IPC and POCSO Act. He said the FIR was lodged in Gautampalli Police Station here.

The apex court’s direction came on a PIL filed by a woman who alleged repeated gangrape by Prajapati and others and sought the court’s direction for lodging of an FIR. The alleged incident had first taken place in October 2014 and continued till July 2016 and when the accused tried to molest the minor daughter of the petitioner, she decided to lodge a complaint after her written request to the DGP in October 2016 went unheeded. Since no FIR was lodged, she moved the apex court seeking justice.

Meanwhile, reacting to the charges, Prajapti told news agency ANI: There’s a political conspiracy behind this, BJP is behind it. They want to tarnish my reputation because I come from a small family. I don’t know the victim,” he said.

Prajapati was sacked by Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav from his cabinet in 2016 during the family feud with his father Mulayam Singh Yadav and uncle Shivpal Yadav but was ater reinstated in the council of ministers.

Jammu and Kashmir police today claimed to have busted a module of Hizbul Mujahideen terror outfit with the arrest of a militant and nine others who were influencing young and innocent boys in Baramulla district to join militancy.

"With the arrest of one militant Irshad Ahmad Shah of Seelu village of Sopore in Baramulla, police has been able to bust a huge network who were spearheading militant activities and recruitment of local boys in Baramulla and Sopore. A total of nine persons were arrested so far," a police official told PTI in Srinagar.

He said Shah alias "Tanveer", who along with two other absconders are involved in the killing of a civilian Eidul Amin Mir of Behrampora, has been active with Hizbul Mujahideen for more than two years.

The conspiracy to kill Mir was hatched in the house of overground Hizb worker Azhar Imtiyaz of Behrampora who was also arrested, the officer said adding efforts are on to arrest two other militants involved in the killing.

He said Shah's arrest led to the busting of the network of overground activists of the outfit who were aiding and abetting insurgency besides luring young boys towards militancy.

"In a series of raids, police assisted by security forces has arrested nine persons from different parts of the district," the spokesman said and identified the arrested persons as Mudasir Ahmad Ganie and Abdul Majeed Dar of Ladoora village, Ajaz Ahmad Shah of Shangergund, Azhar Imtiyaz of Behrampora, Ghulam Mustafa Lone of Thagund, Showkat Ahmad Mir and Aejaz Ahmad Bhat of Bomai and Mohammad Yasin Tantray and Abdul Majid Shah of Wadoora Payeen.

Referring to the killing of two hardcore militants of Hizbul Mujahideen in an encounter in Baramulla on February 4, the officer said the investigations revealed that one of the slain militants - Azhar Khan of Trich village in Kupwara - was a "radical ideologue" of the outfit who with the other killed militant had gone to Pakistan on passports and received arms training there.

"Both these militants were active in Sopore and Baramulla and with the help of this busted overground superstructure were enticing young boys from Sopore and Baramulla for militancy," the officer said.

"Based on the information which was generated during the course of these investigations, some boys who were being recruited for militant activities were counselled and handed over to their families thus saving their lives," the officer said, appealing parents to watch over their children and not to let them "fall into the trap of militant propaganda".

Two days after he was sworn in as Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu after a bitter power tussle in the ruling AIADMK, Edappadi K Palaniswami won a trust vote Saturday after chaotic scenes in the Assembly that led to the eviction of the main Opposition DMK and a walkout by its allies in protest -- they together have 98 MLAs in the 234-member House.

With no Opposition MLAs around, the government sailed through with a 122-11 score -- legislators who owe allegiance to rival O Panneerselvam voted against Palaniswami who had earlier been given 15 days by Governor C Vidyasagar Rao to prove majority in the House.

The vote was taken after two adjournments due to the pandemonium and allegations of attacks. Speaker P Dhanapal and Leader of Opposition M K Stalin said their shirts were torn during the fracas. That trouble was on the cards was evident in the morning. There was heavy police presence on roads leading to Fort St George, the state secretariat, and along the 80-km stretch from the Kuvathur resort which housed over 120 AIADMK MLAs who stood by Palaniswami after the conviction of party general secretary V K Sasikala in a disproportionate assets case.

All MLAs assembled at 11 am in the hal. There were two adjournments after the Speaker rejected calls for secret ballot by MLAs of the Opposition and the Panneerselvam camp. DMK leader M K Stalin joined the chorus of the Panneerselvam camp. Stalin and Panneerselvam said all MLAs, who were ferried in vehicles of ministers from the beach resort to the assembly building in the morning, should be allowed to go to their constituencies and come back to vote. They pointed out that the Governor had given 15 days for the trust vote.

But Speaker Dhanapal rejected their demand and allowed Palaniswami to move the vote of confidence motion on the floor of the House, about 50 minutes after the session began. In the meantime, the audio link from the assembly hall to the media room -- no camera or mobile phone is allowed inside -- was also disconnected.

The Speaker, who said he had discretionary powers to take the final call, went ahead with his decision for a division of votes. At this point, DMK MLAs jumped on to the dais of the assembly officers, evading the watch-and-ward staff. This triggered clashes and Opposition MLAs began hurling chairs, damaged the microphone before the Speaker and the chair and table of the assembly staff. The Speaker adjourned the House until 1 pm, a decision which was later changed to 3 pm since DMK MLAs, who were told to leave the House, remained inside.

DMK MLAs were seen pushing the Speaker and at least two of them took turns to sit on the Speaker’s chair -- the visuals found their way to AIADMK channel Jaya TV. An assembly staff member said, “We had information that the DMK planned a showdown outside the assembly once the session would start at 3 pm. The Rapid Action Force was brought in because Speaker Dhanapal too had been manhandled.”

After 1 pm, police entered the assembly building. DMK MLAs, including Stalin, M Subramanian and other senior leaders, were among those evicted. Stalin emerging with a torn, unbuttoned shirt and headed to the Raj Bhavan to lodge a complaint. When the House re-assembled, it passed the confidence motion after division of votes, saving the day for Palaniswami.

An hour later, the entire state cabinet and AIADMK leaders reached the Jayalalithaa memorial on Marina Beach. Stalin too turned up a kilometre away, sitting in protest before the Gandhi statue. This brought hundreds to the beach and police had to be called in.

The twists and turns in Tamil Nadu politics -- which had a Chief Minister, a Chief Minister-elect and a caretaker Chief Minister in under two weeks -- reached the denouement on Thursday after ‘Edappadi’ K Palaniswami and Cabinet were sworn in by Governor Ch Vidyasagar Rao.

The climax has been fixed for Saturday when the State Assembly will convene for a special session to vote on the confidence motion that the new Chief Minister will move.

The ‘new’ 31-member Cabinet, in fact, is same as the one held by rebel leader O Panneerselvam barring two exceptions, OPS himself and his colleague K Pandiarajan -- only ministers in the rebel camp.

The new AIADMK praesidium chairman KA Sengottaiyan has been accommodated instead of Pandiarajan. There are no changes in departments either.

What is interesting is the long list of important portfolios that are now with the Chief Minister -- Home, Finance, PWD, Irrigation, Highways and Minor Ports, besides the usual Public, General Administration, IAS, IPS and IFS among others.

Though deflated by the turn of events, the rebels have promised to continue their fight till the party is saved from the control of interim general secretary VK Sasikala and her nephew TTV Dinakaran, who is now the deputy general secretary and, in her absence, the de facto chief. The real fight would be over, however, only on the floor of the House.

Only 9 MLAs joined Panneerselvam in his revolt against Sasikala and her family. Of them, only OPS and Education Minister Pandiarajan have been suspended from the party. This means the others would have to follow the party whip at the time of voting or risk disqualification.

By not taking action against the smaller fries, the party has kept open a mutually beneficial window of opportunity.

Enlisting their support is important for the Sasikala camp, too. Even assuming that the trust vote proceeds without any further drama, Palanisamy government would have only 124 MLAs in the House of 234 -- only six more than simple majority -- if rebels are kept away. That is way too thin a buffer to run a government comfortably.

Without the presence of the primary unifying and disciplining factor, late leader J Jayalalithaa, Palaniswami will have to go the extra mile to keep all sections of the party in good humour. However, for once, the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu is the first among equals, and not a towering personality who makes the rest of the Cabinet irrelevant.

Almost 12 years after the 2005 serial blasts in Delhi which claimed 67 lives, a trial court on Thursday acquitted two of the accused -- Mohd Hussain Fazli and Mohd Rafiq Shah -- of all charges, saying the prosecution had “miserably failed” to prove their guilt.

A third accused, Tariq Ahmed Dar, was held guilty of being a member of the Lashkar-e-Taiba, but the court said it didn’t find sufficient evidence to link him to the blasts. Acquitting Dar of the charges of conspiracy to wage a war against the government by carrying out the blasts, the court also said the prosecution had failed to establish a link between Dar and the duo who have been acquitted.

Dar was convicted under Section 38 (being a member of a terror organisation) and Section 39 (giving support to such outfit) of the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA). Additional Sessions Judge Reetesh Singh, however, held that Dar had already spent over 10 years in jail -- the maximum punishment prescribed under the law for these offences.

Observing that the “essence of conspiracy is a meeting of minds,” the court said, “prosecution has not been able to prove any link between Mohd Hussain Fazli and Mohd Rafiq Shah on one hand and Tariq Ahmed Dar on the other. Contents of the (intercepted) conversation therefore fall short in enabling the court to come to any definite conclusion that Tariq Ahmed Dar was part of the conspiracy behind the blasts.”

The court observed that the prosecution’s case was primarily built around intercepted conversations between Dar and an LeT operative named Abu Al Kama, that reportedly took place on November 1, 2005 and November 4, 2005.

“In the absence of any evidence regarding Tariq Ahmed Dar being involved in any conspiracy behind these blasts, none of the charges against Dar is made out,” said the court. It, however, added that there was sufficient evidence to establish his link with the LeT. “Even though no charges were framed against Tariq Ahmed Dar for offences under Section 38 and 39 of the UAPA…there is no bar under law to hold him guilty for both these offences,” it said.

The prosecution had claimed that Fazli had also contacted LeT operatives, and he had later led the probe team to Shah.

But the court said today that “the evidence regarding the fact that police were led to Mohd Rafiq Shah by Mohd Hussain Fazli is rather sketchy.”

“Even if Mohd Hussain Fazli had, in fact, led the team to Mohd Rafiq, it cannot be said that he was conspiring with Mohd Rafiq or any other accused with respect to the blasts… The failure of the prosecution to prove any involvement of Mohd Rafiq Shah… points to the direction that there is no evidence to hold that Mohd Hussain Fazli was involved in any manner with the conspiracy behind the blasts,” said the court.

The prosecution had claimed that the accused had entered into a criminal conspiracy to wage a war against the country and planned the serial blasts.

Two others, Farooq Ahmed Batloo and Ghulam Ahmed Khan, who were charged with funding terror, had earlier pleaded guilty. They were let off by the court as they had already undergone the jail term.

Five other accused -- Abu Ozefa, Abu Al Kama, Rashid, Sazid Ali and Zahid -- are still at large and are said to be in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.

The Diwali-eve serial blasts at three places -- Sarojini Nagar, Paharganj and Kalkaji -- on October 29, 2005 killed 67 people and left over 225 injured.

Reliance Industries Ltd Chairman and Managing Director Mukesh Ambani on Wednesday said the company's newly-launched telecom venture Reliance Jio stands for affordability and data is the new oil in the industry.

"Jio was conceived at a time when the world was fast digitising. What the Jio platform offers is partner with the next generation to solve problems for India to make sure our industries are more productive," Ambani said.

"To my mind, data is the new natural resource. In that sense, India is blessed with 1.3 billion people, for it to have real value it has to be processed into intelligence. Data is the new oil and its benefit is immense to society. India with its young population will have a competitive advantage," he added.

He was speaking at an interactive session at the Nasscom India Leadership Forum 2017 in Mumbai.

Reliance Jio has disrupted the Indian telecom industry with its free data offer till March.

"With the investment in Jio and concurrent action spurred in the industry, India can be among the top 10 in broadband access. Data is the oxygen of this digital life and no Indian should have this in scarcity," he added.

Ambani said human race is at the doorstep of fourth industrial revolution of convergence of digital and biological science. "At the foundation of fourth industrial revolution is connectivity and data, the convergence of all the sciences has been brought about."

Ambani said Aadhaar has enabled Reliance Jio to have millions of customers within few months.

Talking about digital payments, he said: "After the Aadhaar, you consider the digital payments system that is fast developing. Earlier, loans and financial resources were only available to a few people at high value. Now, I see that changing on the basis of technology. Now based on data, you can get a loan on your mobile phone."

"We are at the doorsteps of change in adapting technology to change the lives of people."

"In this new world in terms of digitisation it is important to be open. Whatever the world trends may be, we have to make sure we are always open, always connected. The goal of improving the lives of hundreds of millions of people is the opportunity that we have," he added.

Talking about digitisation, Ambani said: "We have opportunity to adapt artificial intelligence, natural language processing, drones in terms of our logistics. Opportunities are immense. Now we have infrastructure to do it in our own market and make India one of the biggest software markets"of the world."

Counselling a five-point tip-sheet for budding entrepreneurs and potential start-up founders, Ambani said it is essential to find a passion for solving a problem without focusing primarily on financial returns.

"As an entrepreneur, you find a solution to the problem you are passionate about. It is not solving problems but first finding problems and then solving it. Financial results are actually a by-product. Failures are normal. Learn from them.

"Two non-negotiables for me is treat investors' money even more carefully than your own money. You cannot do anything without the right team, align it passionately to your own mission. An entrepreneur is always optimist," he added.

The political crisis in the state of Tamil Nadu took a dramatic turn after caretaker CM O Panneerselvam and Deepa Jayakumar joined hands at Jayalalithaa's memorial at Marina last night, sending out a message to their mutual rival, AIADMK general secretary VK Sasikala.

The surprise turn of events took place when the Supreme Court convicted VK Sasikala in a 21-year-old disproportionate assets case on Tuesday. The AIADMK general secretary, the unrelenting claimant for the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister’s post, is now barred from contesting elections.

Sasikala and her MLAs then chose Edappadi K Palanisamy as the AIADMK legislature party leader who met Governor Vidyasagar Rao to stake claim to the chief minister's chair.

All eyes are now on Governor C Vidyasagar Rao over the swearing-in of the new Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, a day after Edapaddi K Palaniswami staked claim to form the government. With her chief ministerial hopes dashed after the Supreme Court ruling in the disproportionate assets case, AIADMK general secretary V K Sasikala was sent to the Parappana Agrahara Central prison in Bengaluru, where she will serve the remainder of her four-year sentence.

Here are the live updates:

09: 30 pm: Panneerselvam’s meeting with the Governor has concluded, the Hindu reports.

09:00 pm: According to reports, Palanisamy has claimed to have the support of 124 MLAs.

08: 50 pm: After Palanisami, Panneerselvam has reached Raj Bhavan to meet Governor C.Vidyasagar Rao

08: 45 pm: The meeting between Palanisami and the Governor has concluded.

08: 25 pm: Panneerselvam is scheduled to meet the Governor shortly.

08: 05 pm: Sasikala had requested the Benguluru Court to provide A class cell, medical facility and place for meditation. She has been given a cell that will be shared with two other inmates, ANI reports.

08: 00 pm: Edappadi Palanisamy has reached Raj Bhavan to meet Governor C Vidyasagar Rao

07: 30 pm: All eyes are now on Governor C Vidyasagar Rao over the swearing-in of the new Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, a day after Edapaddi K Palaniswami staked claim to form the government.

07: 22 pm: Meanwhile, Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said Governor will decide soon on government formation in Tamil Nadu as per constitution.

07: 00 pm: Sasikala will not be able to contest any polls six years from the date of her release from prison.

06: 56 pm: Sasikala has been sent to jail by Bengaluru court.

06: 45 pm: According to local news channel reports, Sasikala and Ilavarasi have been sent to jail after their surrender before sessions judge at the Parappana Agrahara jail complex.

06: 41 pm: Sudharakan, the third convict, has arrived at Parappana Agrahara prison in Bengaluru.

06: 30 pm: Four cars in Sasikala’s convoy were damaged in act of vandalism near the central jail, PTI reports.

06: 23 pm: After medical check up, Sasikala and Illaverasi have appeared before judge, while third convict Sudhakaran has not reached the court yet.

06: 15 pm: Sasikala has surrendered before the Bengaluru court.

05: 35 pm: Ruckus outside the Parappana Agrahara prison as Sasikala reaches the Bengaluru jail to surrender, according to the News Minute.

05: 15 pm: Sasikala has reached the Bengaluru jail.

05: 04 pm: Tamil Nadu Minister Saroja, a supporter of Sasikala, claims the Governor has assured them that they will be called soon to form the government after going through the letter of support of 125 MLAs.

04: 55 pm: According to reports, Sasikala’s husband, Natarajan, has arrived at Parappana Agrahara Central prison in Bengaluru.

As the single phase assembly elections in Uttarakhand culminated on Wednesday, officials say the vote percentage might be more than in 2012, in a fight mainly between the ruling Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party. The turnout till 5 pm was 68 per cent, said the Election Commission. “The final figure will arrive tomorrow and is expected to be around 70 per cent, ” Chief Electoral Officer Radha Raturi said. “It’s a record for the state,” she added.

The polling to Karnaprayag constituency of the state was adjourned due to the death of BSP candidate Kuldeep Singh Kanwasi and it will now be held on March 9.

The election in the poll-bound hill state is considered a direct contest between the ruling Congress and BJP. But the presence of about a dozen rebel candidates in the fray as independents may upset the calculations. “Polling in 69 of the 70 constituencies in the hill state ended on a peaceful note,” Election Commission officials said. Although the final vote percentage is not known yet, officials believe it might be better than five years back.

After a slow start initially, there was a decent turnout of people across the state as they came out in large numbers to vote. The maximum voting was recorded from Uttarkashi (73 per cent), Nainital (70 per cent), Haridwar (70 per cent), whereas Almora (52 per cent) in Kumaon recorded the least polling. The state had seen 67.22 per cent voting in 2012 elections.

In Gangolihaat constituency of Pithoragarh, zonal magistrate Karan Singh died of heart attack on duty. Singh,59, was posted as the Superintendent Engineer PMGSY in the district. Pithoragarh is one of the hilly districts of the state. In such districts, polling officials had to walk up to 30 km to reach some booths. The EC had estimated that as many as 803 booths located across 35 constituencies would be affected by snow.

Pithoragarh DM Ranjit Sinha noted that “Singh had diabetes and recently had heart operation”. Sinha, however, noted that “he had not informed us. If he had, we would not have put him on duty. It was an unfortunate incident.” Sinha added that the “task of the zonal magistrate was only to coordinate, and he had not personally visited any booth”. At a booth in Kichha, from where CM Harish Rawat is contesting, BJP supporters alleged that they were unable to press the lotus symbol on EVM.

In 2012, Haridwar (75.35 per cent) had witnessed maximum polling, with Uttarkashi (72.99 per cent) being the second. This poll will be defined by the number of seats the third front candidates, comprising BSP and Independents and regional parties, and the 13 Congress rebels, who are contesting on the BJP tickets, are able to get.

This is the fourth assembly polls in the state where 7.5 million voters decided the fate of 628 candidates. Braving inclement weather at some places, people voted in large numbers, officials said. Enthusiasm was evident as some people carried their elderly to the polling station.

While Umesh Pande carried his old father on his shoulders to reach the polling station at Jeolikote, another man carried 92-year-old Lal Singh to the station. 96-year-old Pan Singh came to caste his vote walking with a stick. Postal ballots will be received till March 11, the day votes go for counting in all five states, including Uttarakhand, added officials. In total, Uttarakhand had 10,685 polling stations. Out of which 1,409 were classified as “very sensitive”. A polling station at Yamunotri was located at a height of 9,800 feet above sea level.

12 former Congress MLAs contesting as BJP candidates and two former BJP MLAs travelling in Congress boat have made these elections interesting. Chief minister Harish Rawat, who is seeking a second stint in office is contesting from two seats, Haridwar (rural) and Kichha in Udhamsingh Nagar district. BJP heavyweight Satpal Maharaj is contesting from Chaubatakhal whereas state BJP chief Ajay Bhatt is battling it out in Ranikhet.