Diya strikes chord as woman and army kid

Addressing the crowd in colourful tie-and-dye chiffon sarees every day, BJP's candidate for Rajsamand and erstwhile royal Diya Kumari has wiped out the dull mood in her constituency.

Moreover, after campaigning for 12-14 hours a day in the dust and the scorching heat, Diya has proved the common perception that a "princess" is supposed to be surrounded with comfort wrong.

Diya Kumari (48), a member of the erstwhile royal family of Jaipur has just finished her maiden political assignment as the MLA of Sawai Madhopur. She is in a direct fight with Devkinandan Gurjar of the Congress, who also happens to be the district president of his party.

Striking a chord with the people of Rajsamand, which has eight Assembly constituencies under it, Diya talks about her army background. Her father Brigadier Bhawani Singh had fought the 1971 battle with Bangladesh and won a Mahavir Chakra.

The recent air strikes and the surgical strikes are her poll planks. "I am the daughter of a soldier who has come to seek vote from you," she says. Every year, thousands of youngsters join the army from the Bhim Assembly constituency. She also promises to have army recruitment camps in her constituency.

Banking on Narendra Modi's tagline 'Sabka Saath Sabka Vikas', Diya promises to improve Rajsamand with tourism infrastructure, broad-gauge railway connectivity and better road connectivity.

In separate sabhas with women, she promises to come up with opportunities for young women and men to develop employable skills by setting up institutes of higher education and skill-development centres.

After the sabha gets over, Diya, with dozens of garlands around her neck, is circled by women's groups who want to take selfies with her.

The 48-year-old politician, who is scaling the 470 km-long constituency in an SUV, doesn't miss a chance to visit temples, villages and community centres in her constituency.

"I am getting an overwhelming response from people. I am jotting down what all needs to be done in the constituency," she said.

Diya calls it a day at 11 pm, but she makes sure that she has received feedback and a list of things to be done in the villages she has visited that day.

While there is no star campaigner visiting her constituency, Diya's son Sawai Padmanabh Singh, a polo player, is supporting her mother by striking a chord with youngsters. He made an emotional and fervent appeal to the youth that their vote should not be wasted.

Moreover, from BJP political leaders of Mewar, former Lok Sabha MP Hariom Singh Rathore and five-time MP from Ajmer Rasa Singh Rawat, have pledged full support to Diya. The Rajsamand constituency was formed in 2008; Congress and BJP have won the seat once each.