In all, Hamirpur saw eight deaths in the Kargil conflict. The state lost 52 people in Operation Vijay while 80 were injured. But Hamirpur's importance doesn't rest there. The district also houses 14,000 ex-servicemen, 20,000 serving soldiers and 4,000 widows of ex-servicemen. Add to this the figures from Una and Bilaspur, which also fall under the Hamirpur constituency, and you can double the numbers. Plus there are the dependants and relatives of serving and retired Armymen. All in all, a fertile ground to reap theKargil harvest.

The BJP realises this too. At a recent party rally at Kangoo in Nadaun Tehsil, the star speaker was Colonel Harnam Singh, president of the Ex-Servicemen's League in Hamirpur. The BJP was clearly happy having him at the function and especially pointed out his presence to mediapersons.

``Prize catch!'' exclaimed an enthusiastic party worker.

Dhumal, for his part, has made it a point to visit all the injured soldiers from the state, whether at Kargil or at Chandimandir. In his segment, he has visited families of the martyrs. The Chief Minister also put on auction all the mementoes that he has received during his tenure and sent the proceeds to the Kargil relief fund. Himachal was the first state to announce an ex-gratia of Rs 5 lakh to those killed in Operation Vijay. Before August 15, widows and other dependants of soliders killed in Kargil were given appointment letters. All of this is being highlighted by the BJP cadre now.

The party has its sitting MP, Suresh Chandel, in the fray,while the Congress has replaced its last year's candidate, Major General Bikram Singh, with Ram Lal Thakur. The BSP has put up Gian Chand, but the party is not so strong in the state.

However, it is Dhumal's prestige which is at stake here, as any loss in his own bastion would mean a loss of face. Chandel had won the last elections by 77,000 votes, while in 1996, Dhumal had lost to Major General Singh. In the two elections before 1996, Dhumal had won from the seat.

Another factor that plays a vital role here is caste. Both the Congress and BJP candidates this time are from Bilaspur and are Rajputs, the dominant caste here.

The BJP is obviously hoping that the Kargil win would give it an edge. However, its zealousness to please soldiers has also backfired in some respects. Seeing the way Kargil victims have been treated, other soldiers from the state are also demanding similar compensation and relief. On Sunday, a body of a soldier killed in Operation Rakshak arrived in Hamirpur.

The compensationpackage allotted for him was much lower. Demanding equal treatment for all, an angry ex-serviceman says: ``Soldiers are soldiers and martyrs are martyrs, whether at Kargil or in an anti-insurgency operation.''Sainik Bhawan at Hamirpur is thronging with applications from families of martyrs of other operations, seeking enhanced compensation. Even those disabled in previous actions are now expecting more. It may not be too late before the Opposition catches on to the discontent.

Already, realising the importance they have come to acquire, ex-servicemen are making political leanings clear. Immediately after the Pokhran nuclear blast, they had rushed a telegram congratulating the Prime Minister. The prime demands of the soldiers remain complete adoption of the Pay Commission report's recommendations regarding them and the one rank-one pension principle.

However, some are alarmed at the trend of soldiers being wooed by parties, and at defence, so far a taboo subject, becoming a political issue. A Congressworker at Nadaun admits this, saying: ``Whether it is Bofors or Kargil, increasingly defence issues are becoming political issues.''

Insisting that he himself is a non-political man despite the BJP rally he attended, Colonel Harnam Singh says: ``You see, it is a question of LoC.

While the Indian Army has refused to cross the LoC, retired faujis have crossed it and joined politics.''