In Himachal, BJP, Congress await result with bated breath
ASSEMBLY ELECTION RESULTS BJP, Congress upbeat; key contest in many constituencies; counting of votes will start at 48 stations at 8 am; the election commission has ordered webcasting from at least 15% counting centres
SHIMLA: For such a small place, the significance the hill state of Himachal Pradesh has for the Congress and B ha ra ti ya Jan at a Party (BJP) is huge.
The two parties, which ran a high-voltage campaign to win over the 50 lakh-odd voters in a direct fight, are waiting with bated breath for the outcome of counting of votes on Monday to elect a new assembly. And, it has been a long wait, as the polling was held on November 9.
A clutch of exit polls have predicted a big win for the BJP, but leaders of both sides say they are confident of the victory.
The stakes have never been higher for them. The BJP, gung ho after its wins in several states, sees itself as the “natural claimant” this time with veteran leader Prem Kumar Dhumal as its CM face due to the revolving-door electoral history of the state in the past three decades. The party is looking to continue its victory march and expand its political footprint with just a little over a year to go for general elections.
The wager for the ruling Congress is equally high, if not more. Pegged back by the pounding it has received in election after election since the 2014 Lok Sabha debacle with the exception of neighbouring Punjab, the party desperately needs to wrest back the initiative. A win here would serve as a big morale booster for the party rank and file. Also, Rahul Gandhi, who took over as president of Congress on Saturday, would be hoping to start his innings with some positive news.
For chief minister Virbhadra Singh also, the stakes are high. Vi rb had ra and his family a ref ac---
ing cases pertaining to corruption and disproportionate assets, which are being investigated by Central Bureau of Investigation, Enforcement Directorate and the Income Tax department. His son, Vikram ad it ya, is also making his electoral debut from the Shimla rural constituency. Singh vacated the seat for him.
The two traditional rivals went all out in the “battle of prestige”, peppering each other with accusations and indulging in competitive populism like never before. Leading the BJP charge was PM Narendra Modi who targeted Congress and Virbhadra on corruption, deteriorating law and order and joblessness to try and make the most of the undercurrent of anti-incumbency against the ruling party in the state.
Both Congress and BJP have their traditional pockets of strong support, but the polls have shown a tendency to flip parties and punish non-performance. The state saw a record turnout of 75%.
SHIMLA: Exit polls predict a clear win for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), but the ruling Congress is confident of bucking antiincumbency and retaining Him ach al Pradesh when results of the hill state’s November 9 assembly elections are declared on Monday.
A day ahead of counting of ballots cast in the state’ s 68 assembly segments, the BJP is certain of winning more than 50 seats.
DHUMAL,VIRBHADRA ATTACKEACHOTHER
“We have set a target of 50-plus seats. The exit polls are not a surprise for us,” an optimistic BJP chief ministerial candidate Pr em Kumar Dhumal said.
“People have voted for change and we are going to form the government with a record win ,” he added.
On the other hand, chief minister Virbhadra Singh dismissed the exit polls, saying these should be banned as they aren’t scientific and often manipulated.
“I am waiting for the results. BJP is targeting above 50 or 60 seats. This is just a dream. Let them dream. Nobody is stopping them,”saidthe83-year-oldSingh, who is the state’s longest-serving and fourth chief minister, as he hoped to repeat the Congress’s 2012 victory and retain power.
Taking a dig at Dhumal, Virbhadra said despite favourable exit polls, Dhumal is not sure about his own victory.
“Dhumal ji is talking cabinet formation but it is not going to happen. Dhumal sahab is not going to win his own seat. Cabinet formation is a distant dream ,” he said.
The Congress had won 36 seats, while the BJP got 26, and Independents bagged six that year.
Chief electoral officer Pushpen dr a Raj put said counting will start at 48 centre sat 8 am on Monday. More than 3.78 million votes were cast, accounting for a record 75.28% polling in the state.
BATTLE FOR SURVIVAL, ANDDOMINANCE
According to political observers, it was a close contest between the Congress and BJP since there is “no clear wave in favour of any party”. The state has alternately elected the Congress and BJP governments since 1985.
For almost two decades, the Congress and BJP have fought almost every assembly and Lok S ab ha polls under the leadership of Singh and Dhumal.
Singh is pushing to stay at the helm for the seventh time. Dhumal, at 73, is making a strong bid to ensure his party’s win with a record margin to silence detractors within the party.
“This time, Sing his fighting on two fronts…to establish son Vikram ad it ya Singh,whoi sc ontesting his maiden assembly elec- tion. Second, to ensure the Congress repeat performance as he forced the party to announce him as the chief ministerial candidate despite all odds,” a political observer told IANS.
For Dhumal, it’s a battle for survival after the defeat in the 2012 assembly polls. Since then, he has been almost marginal is ed within the party.
Both Singh and Dhumal are seeking re-election from new seats.
The outcome will decide the political future of Vikramaditya, who heads the state’s Congress youth wing .“I’ mconf id ent…Peo- ple will repose faith in policies and programmes of chief minister Virbhadra Singh,” he said.
HEAVYWEIGHTS INTHEFRAY
Of 67 sitting MLAs, 60 legislators, nine cabinet ministers, HPCC pres id en tSukhv in der Sing hSukkhu, stat eB JP chief Sat pal Singh Satti, assembly deputy speaker Jagat Singh Negi, and eight chief parliamentary secretaries contested the polls, along with a dozen former ministers.
Health minister Kaul Singh Thakur’s prestige is at stake in Man di, where he is challenged by onetime loyalist and local Congress leader Puran Chand.
Man di was a pocket borough of former telecom minister Sukh Ram, who along with his son has switched sides to the BJP this time.Thefather-sonduohadwon 10 of 12 elections since 1962.
The other notable constituency to watch out for is Palampur, where 37-year-old Ashish Butail is caught in a triangular fight against BJP’s Indu Goswami, who is known to have Prime Minister Na rend ra Mo di’ s blessings, and Parveen Sharma, who rebelled against the BJP after being denied a ticket.
Son of assembly speaker Brij Bi h ar iL al But ail, he belongs to an influential family that has large tea gardens in the small hill town.
Him ac hal Pradesh has a tradition of changing the government every elections and going by the trend, this time it is the turn of the BJP.
The party ousted the Congress in 1990 and the Congress avenged defeat in 1993.
The BJP formed the government with the help of the Himachal Vikas Congress in 1998 and the Congress was back in power in 2003. The BJP made a comeback in 2007.
We have set a target of 50plus seats. The exit polls are not surprising for us.
PREM KUMAR DHUMAL, BJP’s chief ministerial candidate
Dhumal is talking about cabinet formation but he is not going to win his own seat.
VIRBHADRA SINGH, chief minister