Stage set for Gautam Buddha Nagar battle

Nearly 2.7 million registered voters living in areas that fall under the Gautam Buddha Nagar parliamentary constituency are set to become the first National Capital Region (NCR) residents that cast their vote in the second phase of the high-octane 2024 Lok Sabha elections on Friday.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will aim for a hattrick from the GB Nagar seat, while the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) bloc and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) will fancy an upset.

Incumbent MP Mahesh Sharma (64) is contesting the seat for the fourth time for the BJP, while Samajwadi Party’s (SP) Mahendra Nagar will represent the INDIA bloc. BSP candidate Rajendra Solanki is the third major candidate in the seat, which was carved out of the Khurja constituency in 2009.

GB Nagar is made up of five segments — Noida, Dadri, and Jewar in GB Nagar district, and Sikandrabad and Khurja in Bulandshahr district – and has a total of 2,675,148 registered voters,according to Election Commission of India data. A total of 782,872 people will be voting in Noida, according to the data.

BJP’s Sharma, pointing to development projects across the constituency, expressed confidence that the people will give him a third back-to-back victory from the seat.

“We will win this seat for a third time as the people are with us because of the work that our party has done in the country and in this region, particularly over the last 10 years. Our rivals are nowhere in the fight in these elections for a very simple reason — under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, GB Nagar has seen unprecedented development,” Sharma said.

“We are building Asia’s largest airport at Jewar and have brought huge investment opportunities, thereby creating jobs and new businesses. We have worked for all communities without any discrimination under the leadership of PM Modi and Uttar Pradesh chief Minister Yogi Adityanath,” he added.

Leaders from the SP said that voters are discontented with the BJP rule in the state, which will work in favour of its candidate Mahendra Nagar.

“Voters have understood that the BJP made false promises... The BJP government in the state has not taken any decision on the demands of the farmers, who ran a six-month protest against the Noida authority, demanding better compensation and rehabilitation facilities. The BJP government has not addressed the registry issue of homebuyers for more than eight years. All segments of society, be it urban or rural, are upset with the BJP rule and they are looking for an alternative. We are the best choice for them in 2024,” said SP national spokesperson Pradeep Bhati.

Bhati added that the contest in GB Nagar is a straight fight between his party and the BJP, as the BSP “has lost ground not only here, but also at the state level”.

The BSP, too, said that discontent against the BJP will work in its favour.

“All communities, including farmers and homebuyers, are supporting us… The BJP has not addressed the issues of the farmers, who gave their land for the development of Noida and Greater Noida. Homebuyers who came here with hopes of getting a house are also not able to get justice. Therefore, all sections of society are with us and they will teach a lesson to BJP,” said BSP candidate Rajendra Solanki.

A senior BSP functionary, on condition of anonymity, said that the party believes it can engineer a victory in GB Nagar by stitching together votes from the Muslim and Scheduled Caste communities, which collectively make up around 17% of the voters in the constituency.

In addition, the functionary said, votes from Rajputs — reportedly upset with the BJP over a perceived lack of tickets to members of the community — may also help push BSP over the line. Rajputs make up about 13% of the voters in GB Nagar.

However, BJP’s Sharma refuted claims that voters are upset with the party.

“No community is angry with us, and everyone supports us. We will win the seat by a huge margin. The BSP and SP candidates are nowhere near us, and the two parties are only seen during the time of elections,” he said.

Worry that heat, long weekend may keep voters away

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has forecast that the maximum temperature on polling day may go as high as 40°C, which election officials and political parties feel may keep voters away.

“We have issued appeals to apartment owners associations, residents welfare associations and other social groups to encourage people to vote so that more and more voters can exercise their right to vote on Friday. We have also made it a point to ensure a smooth system so that people can vote with ease,” GB Nagar district magistrate Maneesh Kumar Verma, who is also chief election officer for the seat, said.

Separately, the BJP, the SP, and the BSP have set up tents outside polling booths to provide shade for voters when they come out to vote on Friday.

Another worry for election officials is that since the polling day is on a Friday, people may skip voting and take a long weekend off. People in the DM’s office said that the administration has directed private and government schools to remain open on Saturday so that parents are compelled to stay in town on voting day.