Shimla: In a major political shift, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-backed candidates on Thursday secured control of the 25-member Shimla Zila Parishad, a long-held Congress stronghold, winning the top posts by a narrow margin.
Bhupendra Singh Sisodia and Bharat Singh Kalanta were elected chairperson and vice-chairperson, respectively—marking the first time BJP-backed members have taken the helm of the district body.
Sisodia secured 13 votes to win the chairperson post by a single vote, while Kalanta polled 14 votes to win the vice-chairperson contest.
The elections followed a Himachal Pradesh high court order. BJP members had petitioned the court over prolonged delays following the declaration of local body election results on May 31, which pushed the executive vote back by over three months.
The House comprises 11 BJP members, 10 Congress members, and four Independents. With 13 votes required for a simple majority, the four Independents proved decisive by backing the BJP panel.
Prominent leaders from both parties were present at the venue, including BJP Rajya Sabha MPs Harsh Mahajan and Sikander Kumar, BJP MLA Balbir Verma, panchayati raj minister Anirudh Singh (Congress), and HP State Cooperative Bank Chairman Devendra Shyam.
Following his election, Sisodia alleged the state government deliberately stalled the poll process. “All 13 of us had to move the high court to get a date fixed. Without judicial intervention, the elections might not have taken place even after six months,” he said. “Our immediate focus will be addressing the key issues facing the public and bringing them up directly with the government.”
{{/usCountry}}Following his election, Sisodia alleged the state government deliberately stalled the poll process. “All 13 of us had to move the high court to get a date fixed. Without judicial intervention, the elections might not have taken place even after six months,” he said. “Our immediate focus will be addressing the key issues facing the public and bringing them up directly with the government.”
{{/usCountry}}Vice-chairperson Kalanta termed the outcome a signal of a broader shift ahead of next year’s assembly elections. “Shimla district was long considered a Congress bastion, but that hold is now broken. This victory sounds the electoral bugle for 2027,” Kalanta said.
Victory for democracy: Thakur
Former chief minister and leader of the opposition Jai Ram Thakur hailed the outcome as a “victory for democracy” and a rebuke of the ruling administration.
“The government employed every tactic to influence the mandate, yet its efforts failed,” he said, targeting chief minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu. “Public representatives have delivered a fitting response to attempts to undermine democracy through the misuse of power. The chief minister should take a lesson from this defeat and respect the public mandate.”