The Andaman and Nicobar islands, an archipelago in the Bay of Bengal with nearly 3.15 lakh electors, despite being cut off from the mainland by at least 900 km (if one takes into account the distance between the northernmost point of the islands and the mouth of Hooghly river), have been part of the national mainstream, as the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Congress., which are the main adversaries at the all-India level, are the principal political forces in this group of islands, too.
For over 25 years, the two national parties have been dominating the political landscape in these islands. The upcoming election, polling for which is to take place on April 19 along with 101 other Lok Sabha constituencies in the mainland, is going to be yet another intense battle between them. The only difference this time is that the BJP, which won three times since 1999, has brought back the experienced three-time MP, Bishnu Pada Ray, to take on the incumbent Member of Parliament, Kuldeep Rai Sharma of the Congress. In 2019, Mr. Ray, who is now 73, was replaced with Vishal Jolly, who lost to Mr. Sharma by a margin of about 1,400 votes.
Apart from these two contestants, there are 10 others in the fray now, including five independents. The All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK), a major party in Tamil Nadu, is contesting for the first time, says its candidate, the 50-year-old contractor-turned-politician, K.J.B. Selvaraj.
