Drubbing for Congress as BJP scores a convincing win
shimla — The BJP wrested power in Himachal Pradesh from the Congress, winning close to two-thirds majority with 42 seats in its kitty and leading in two more in the 68-member assembly. But, BJP Chief Ministerial candidate Prem Kumar Dhumal and state party chief Satpal Satti faced a humiliating defeat.
The ruling Congress managed to win 20 seats and is leading in one, with its Chief Ministerial candidate and sitting incumbent Virbhadra Singh winning with a slender margin of 6,051 votes from Arki.
The Chief Minister’s son Vikramaditya Singh also marked his maiden victory in the assembly with a margin of 4,880 votes from Shimla (Rural), the seat his father was earlier representing.
The BJP’s state chief Satpal Satti was defeated in Una by the Congress’ Satpal Singh Raizada.
Dhumal faced defeat against close rival Rajinder Rana of the Congress from Sujanpur, the seat he was asked to contest from.
Rana was once the “election manager” of Dhumal and knows his family well.
Rana defeated two-time Chief Minister Dhumal in a straight contest by 2,933 votes.
“In politics one faces defeat while another faces a win. It will be failure on our part not to be able to give justice to the people (of Sujanpur). It’s time for introspection,” an emotional Dhumal told reporters in his hometown Hamirpur.
Dhumal had swapped his Hamirpur seat, the pocket borough of the BJP, with party legislator Narendra Thakur, who won the seat. on Congress President Rahul Gandhi. “The elections were conducted under my leadership and I accept our defeat.”
Dhumal’s close confidants Ravinder Ravi, Gulab Singh Thakur and Randhir Sharma, all sitting legislators, and Tejwant Negi, lost.
However, BJP’s Jairam Thakur won the elections and would represent Seraj for the fifth consecutive time. Congress cabinet ministers Kaul Singh, Sudhir Sharma, Thakur Singh and Prakash Chaudhary faced humiliating defeat from the BJP. Kaul Singh’s daughter Champa Thakur suffered defeat at the hands of BJP’s Anil Sharma from Mandi.
Sharma resigned from the government and the ruling Congress and joined the opposition BJP just ahead of the polls along with his father and former Telecom Minister Sukh Ram.
Likewise, BJP’s Ravindra Dhiman defeated Congress’ sitting legislator Yadvinder Goma from Jaisinghpur and Kishori Lal of the BJP defeated Bansi Lal of the Congress from Anni seat. —