Congress is depending on the regional clout of its leaders as none of the BJP’s five sitting MPs appears to be overwhelmingly popular.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s April 5 rally was large but the organisers were upset that the parade ground was not swamped by supporters.

Police sources who oversaw the recent rally as well as the one in 2014, said last time supporters spilled over to the nearby markets. Probably they depend more on WhatsApp and TV coverage than on actual physical presence, the sources said.

It’s clear that Mr. Modi’s appeal has shrunk a bit but the fact remains that the election in Uttarakhand’s five Lok Sabha seats is essentially about him and his ‘muscular’ anti-Pakistan stance.

None of the BJP’s five sitting MPs from the State appears to have any overwhelming popularity. What has impressed many voters is Mr. Modi’s ability to hit back at Pakistan. “We voters do not think of jobs and demonetisation’s impact on the national economy. We don’t think that way,” said a resident of Dehra Dun’s business district, lauding the strong response of the Prime Minister to the terror attack on CRPF personnel in Pulwama.

Prime Minister Modi as expected highlighted national security during his speech in Dehradun, saying, “There are some people in the country whose actions are applauded by our enemy Pakistan.” He tried to paint the Congress as an opponent of the armed forces that will do away with AFSPA if elected to power. AFSPA, he said, was a “rakhsha kavach.”

A source inside the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh who spoke on condition of anonymity said there were grievances against the BJP MPs from the State. However the Centre’s Char Dham road connectivity project has won much appreciation.

If the BJP is banking on Mr. Modi, the Congress depends on the regional clout of its leaders. Among the contenders from the Congress is Harish Rawat for the Nainital seat. Mr. Rawat’s charisma cuts across party lines. He is as popular as the BJP’s B.C. Khanduri and Bhagat Singh Koshiyari. With more than four decades of public service behind him, Mr. Rawat as a former Chief Minister and general secretary of the Congress, is a formidable player.

One negative factor working against him is the lack of sufficient time for campaign, Congress candidate Manish Khanduri for the Pauri seat told The Hindu. The State goes to polls on the first day of the election season. However, the real concern is that though Mr. Manish Khanduri had created a splash by joining the Congress on March 16, his father B.C. Khanduri not crossing over has created some confusion at the local level.

Pritam Singh in Tehri Garhwal is also seen as a major challenger to BJP’s Mala Rajya Laxmi Shah. Haridwar constituency will witness a strong contest between Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank of the BJP and Ambrish Kumar of the Congress. Here the minority votes are expected to flow to the Congress, if Rahul Gandhi’s April 6 rally in Haridwar is any indication.

It is obvious that by fielding strong candidates the Congress has gone local, while the BJP banks on the Modi magic and the Prime Minister’s recent anti-terror strikes across the LoC. It remains to be seen if the big local names can upset the high nationalism plank of the Modi election machine.