A political contest emerges in Jammu and Kashmir’s Udhampur, geographically one of the largest parliamentary constituencies

In one of the largest constituencies in the country, the so far one-sided contest has turned interesting with the entry of Lal Singh Choudhary, standing against BJP’s Jitendra Singh

Kanta Andotra knows she has a tough task cut out for her. The former MLA is canvassing for votes from village to village on behalf of her husband, Lal Singh Choudhary, a two-time MP from Udhampur.

Mr. Choudhary, a Congress party candidate, has been fielded against the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) Jitendra Singh, who won in the previous two Lok Sabha elections with a landslide margin.

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During the 2014 General Election, Mr. Choudhary, who had briefly joined the BJP and was a Minister in the then BJP-People’s Democratic Party (PDP) government, had helped Mr. Singh in his election campaign. The so far one-sided contest has turned interesting with the entry of Mr. Chowdhary. 

Ms. Andotra begins her speech by invoking Mata Vaishno Devi, the revered deity. “Do you want a candidate to whom you can reach through a call even in the dead of the night or someone who never steps foot in the area? Do you want a local representative or an outsider? Our issues are raasta and naali [road and drainage], there are no jobs for the youth, pension for widows and Anganwadi workers have stopped,” Ms. Andotra says to a group of men and women at Kootah in Kathua district, assembled in the precincts adjacent to a temple.

Udhampur goes to vote on April 19 and, geographically, is one of the largest parliamentary constituencies in the country. It comprises Doda, Ramban, Kathua, Kishtwar and Udhampur districts, and has a 60% Hindu and 40% Muslim population.

Some locals said that Mr. Singh was an “absent MP.” Others said that his job in the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) keeps him busy.