Sunaina Singh, 35, a transgender activist, is set to challenge the BJP from the Dhanbad Lok Sabha constituency in the upcoming general elections.
Lok Sabha Elections 2024: The Dhanbad Lok Sabha Constituency has been a bastion of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for past three decades. The party has won three straight terms from the Dhanbad seat in the 2009, 2024, and the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.
However, the ruling party is facing a new challenger in the upcoming general elections, Sunaina Singh— a 35-year-old transgender woman, who is striving to change the status quo in India’s coal capital.
Who is Sunaina Singh?
Sunaina Singh, 35, a transgender activist, is the district president of the ‘Kinnar Maa Trust’, who is contesting the upcoming Lok Sabha elections in a bid to change the status quo and change the fortunes of the key constituency, which according to her, has become a hub of corruption, crime, and poverty.
Abandoned at birth by her biological parents, the life story of Sunaina is mirrored by scores of similar ones from the transgender community. She was taken in by the community who took care of her and helped her get a decent education. After her initial schooling, Singh earned a Bachelors degree in Zoology from the P K Roy Memorial College in Dhanbad.
“After my birth, I was abandoned at the hospital by my parents. The state president of our community took care of me after that. I tried to find a job in Delhi, but faced a lot of discrimination. I finally decided to return to Dhanbad and decided to serve the people of the constituency,” Sunaina told news agency PTI.
‘Want to remove crime, poverty in Dhanbad’
Asked about her motivation to enter politics, Sunaina claimed that Dhanbad has become a cesspit of poverty, corruption, crime, and unemployment… and she aims to remedy that.
“No development work has been carried out in Dhanbad, a major coal supplier. Cases of murder and extortion have also increased manifold here. My agenda is clear. I would like to work for improvement in education and create employment opportunities. The unemployment rate is high in Dhanbad and even educated youths are not getting jobs,” the 35-year-old said.
She also asserted that fighting against corruption plaguing the state is also a key agenda for her as it is one of main reasons hindering the state’s development.
“I also want to fight against corruption, which is one of the major deterrents in the path of the state’s progress,” Singh told PTI.
‘People generously funding my campaign’
Sunaina Singh, who also works extensively for the betterment of transgender persons in the state, expressed anguish over the “inequality against the transgender community”.
About how she plans to fund her poll campaign, Sunaina revealed that people from the transgender community as well as the general public have been making donations to encourage her to fight the elections.
On Tuesday, Sunaina announced her candidature from Dhanbad. She will contest the polls on the ticket offered by Uttar Pradesh-based Naqi Bhartiya Ekta Party (NBEP). Singh revealed that she had planned to contest as an independent candidate, but was later offered a ticket by the Chaudhary Zarar Ahmed Naqi-led NBEP.
Dhanbad Lok Sabha Election 2024
However, the 35-year-old faces a monumental challenge as she goes up against BJP candidate Dulu Mahto. The ruling party has maintained an iron grip over the Dhanbad seat in Jharkhand since ages and it will indeed be a remarkable feat to dethrone it.
The Dhanbad Lok Sabha constituency, which covers Bokaro and Dhanbad districts in Jharkhand, is one of the 14 Lok Sabha seats in the state, and will go to polls on May 25– Phase 6 of the seven-phased Lok Sabha Elections 2024.
The opposition INDIA bloc has not announced a candidate from the Dhanbad seat yet.
(With PTI inputs)
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