Daijiworld Media Network - Mewat (SHP)
Mewat, Oct 11: The BJP candidate for Punhana seat in Haryana's Mewat district is in the news for having a stellar resume. The 27-year-old Nauksham Chaudhary is a History graduate from Delhi University's Miranda House college, she has a Master's Degree in Luxury Brand Management from Italy and has a Communications degree from London. This is not expected out of a candidate from India's most backward district. However, she stands to be BJP's only hope of winning a seat in the Muslim-dominated district.
Chaudhary's father is a retired judge and her mother is a senior officer in Haryana government's revenue department. Chaudhary came back to India a month ago and expressed a desire to work for the development of her district. "I had an excellent career in the private sector where I would be serving as a public relations executive for the biggest brands of the world. This shift happened because this is my paternal area. It is underdeveloped and backward. Politically, the scenario is such that criticism is based on religion and leaders tend to exploit the masses. I want to work for women empowerment in the area and education. My parents have taught me with the values that to do anything good in life, you need to be educated," she said.
The district has over 5 lac voters among which 80 per cent are Muslims and the rest are Hindus. Although BJP has a stronghold on several other states, 2014 elections in Mewat's - Punhana, Ferozepur Jhirka and Nuh were a disaster for the party.
Nauksham believes that this time around, she would manage to secure a win for the BJP. But, Illiyas, her Congress contender, claims that he is not bothered by her qualifications. "It's a good thing that she has studied abroad and is a capable child. She is like a sister and a daughter to us but the lesson of politics comes only with experience. It does not come by reading textbooks and I believe that after 2024, she will go back to where she came from. A long-pending demand of the people in education for their children, for a university. Most teenagers from here end up illiterate and work as drivers. But there is no proper procedure here to get a driver's licence and people spend days struggling for it. I will change that," Illiyas was quoted in an NDTV report.
In 2018, a NITI Aayog report declared Mewat as India's most backward district. Bumpy roads, ditches, piles of garbage are a common sight all across the region. Health indicators, especially among women, are very poor. A large number of women and children suffer from Anaemia.
One of the residents of the district stated that she will vote for BJP as she felt the party will work the development of the district.
Meanwhile, another resident said he would support Illiyas as the leader worked to provide electricity and water supply for the district.
Elections to the 90-member Haryana Assembly will take place on October 21 and results will be declared on October 24.