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Bypoll to be litmus test for Jai Ram’s popularity in Himachal
All eyes are on the Mandi parliamentary bypoll, where the BJP has fielded Kargil war veteran Brigadier Khushal Thakur against former member of Lok Sabha Pratibha Singh, as the constituency happens to be the home turf of the chief minister Jai Ram Thakur
The stakes are high for chief minister Jai Ram Thakur as the Mandi Lok Sabha and three assembly byelections on October 30 are being seen as a test of his popularity with Himachal Pradesh heading for elections next year.
All eyes are on the Mandi parliamentary bypoll, where the BJP has fielded Kargil war veteran Brigadier Khushal Thakur against former member of Lok Sabha Pratibha Singh, who is also the widow of six-time Himachal chief minister Virbhadra Singh, as the constituency happens to be the home turf of the chief minister.
The Mandi parliamentary constituency has 17 assembly segments spread across Mandi, Kullu, Shimla, Kinnaur, Lahaul-Spiti and Chamba. The Mandi Lok Sabha seat has been lying vacant since April this year, following the death of two-time MP Ram Swaroop Sharma.
The result will be all the more significant as the chief minister was seen single-handedly leading the campaign to the byelections with Anurag Thakur, the Union minister for information and broadcasting, being the only leader from the Centre to campaign for the party candidate.
Interestingly, this time, the narrative of the Himachal bypoll extend beyond the two primary political parties – the Congress and the BJP – as rebels from both parties have pitched their claims to the sought-after seats.
While the elections will have no bearing on the stability of the government, they come at a time when the BJP has changed the guard in many states.
Inflation: A hot-button issue
With issues such as inflation, rising prices of oil and unemployment at the centrestage, the election will be no cakewalk for the BJP as it faces anti-incumbency charges.
The saffron party has tried to present the Mandi bypoll as a contest between a decorated war veteran and a dynast. However, people want the political parties to talk about real issues.
In tribal Kinnaur, which has over 55,000 voters, the locals are seething over the damage to their ecology due to power projects. They see the multiple fatal landslides this year as a consequence of overexploitation of the area’s resources. In Lahaul-Spiti and Pangi, lack of development has been a constant poll plank.
A triangular contest in Fatehpur
The Fatehpur assembly segment in Kangra district, which fell vacant due to the death of incumbent legislator Sujan Singh Pathania, will set the tone for the 2022 assembly election. as political pundits say “the road to Shimla goes through Kangra.”
Polls in the most populous district of the state, which sends 15 legislators to the state assembly, will be a referendum of the BJP’s policies. It is seen that the party which traditionally wins most seats from the district forms the government.
This year, the constituency is facing a triangular contest, with Congress’ Bhawani Singh Pathania, the son of the deceased incumbent legislator slugging it out against BJP’s Baldev Thakur and former MP Rajan Sushant who is contesting as an Independent. Sushant’s gains are sure to harm the BJP’s prospects.
Applecart precarious placed in Jubbal-Kotkhai
The Jubbal-Kotkhai assembly, is also highly significant, as it falls smack in the state’s influential apple belt. However, here the BJP seems to have shot itself in the foot by denying a ticket to Chetan Bragta, the son of former Minister Narinder Bragta, whose death necessitated the byelection.
The decision was taken to discourage dynastic politics. However, Bragta has rebelled and the entire block of BJP workers have rallied behind him. Fallen on hard times in the constituency, the BJP is struggling to find booth-level workers to manage the election. Experts say Congress’ Rohit Thakur and Chetan. The party’s handling of the farmers’ issues will be the determining factor with apple igrown in almost 16 constituencies – Shimla, Kinnaur, Lahaul Spiti, Mandi Sirmaur and Chamba districts.
In Arki, the contest is between Congress Sanjay Awasthi and BJP’ Rattan Singh Pal. Former chief minister Virbhadra Singh’s death had necessitated the election.
