Himachal Pradesh Elections: 73% turnout as voters come out in droves

Himachal Pradesh Elections 2022: CM Jai Ram’s constituency saw the highest polling (82.22%), while Baijnath recorded lowest (50.25%); polling peaceful, says CEO Maneesh Garg

SHIMLA/DHARAMSHALA: Himachal Pradesh registered a heavy voter turnout of more than 73.40% (till 10 pm) exercising their franchise as the polling for the 13th Vidhan Sabha passed off peacefully on Saturday. The figures are likely to go up as polling concluded late in the evening at several polling stations, said the election commission officials.

People line up at polling booth to cast their votes in Mandi on Saturday. (Birbal Sharma/HT)

In the 2017 assembly elections, the state recorded a 75.74% voter turnout and 73.51% in 2012.

The counting of votes will be held on December 8. Though a high voter turnout generally indicates a strong anti-incumbency, it is difficult to predict which party will benefit from this turnout.

The opposition Congress, seeking to regain power, in the state, claimed that it would get a thumping majority, while the ruling BJP claimed that it was a vote for change in trend and people have voted for a change of “Rivaz (convention of changing government every five years)”.

Chief minister Jai Ram expressed confidence that BJP will repeat the government, while Himachal Congress chief Pratibha Singh claimed her party will bag 40-45 seats.

Congress fought the elections on the issues of implementation of the Old Pension Scheme (OPS), inflation and unemployment while BJP played up national issues like Ram Mandir, Article 370 and surgical strike, trying to cash in on the emotional sentiments along with reiterating to voters the benefit of double-engine government for fast pace development in the state.

The new entrant Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which was projecting itself as the third alternative, however, failed to sustain the momentum it had built after the landslide victory in neighbouring Punjab.

The voting percentage has gradually increased in the state since the first election in 1952.

In the 2017 elections, the BJP won 44 seats while Congress registered victory in 21 assembly constituencies. Communist Party of India (Marxist) had won the Theog seat and two had gone to the independents.

This time there are 412 candidates in the fray from 68 assembly seats, of whom 24 are women.

Big wigs come out to vote

CM Jai Ram Thakur and Congress’ Pratibha Singh were among the early voters. Thakur voted with his family at the polling station at Aaun in Murhag Panchayat of the Seraj assembly segment from where he is contesting as the BJP candidate. Thakur is contesting for the seventh time. He has won five elections consecutively and lost one. Pratibha cast her ballot at her family’s stronghold of Rampur Bushahr in the Shimla district. BJP National chief JP Nadda cast his vote at Vijaypur in Bilaspur while Union information and broadcasting minister Anurag Thakur along with his father Prem Kumar Dhumal and his family cast their vote at Samirpur.

Meanwhile, the polling in Himachal Pradesh began at 8 am. The voting got off to a slow start but picked up pace as the day wore on.

As per the trends till 10 pm, Sirmaur district had recorded a voter turnout of 78%, followed by 77.85% in Lahaul-Spiti, 77.28% in Una, 72.05% in Shimla, 72.49% in Mandi, 65.72% in Bilaspur, 71.18% in Hamirpur, 64.59% in Kullu, 71.68% in Kangra, 74.02% in Chamba and 72.38% in Kinnaur.

State urban development minister Suresh Bhardwaj exercised his franchise at a polling station at the Tibetan Central School in Chotta Shimla. “Voting was brisk in the rural areas but it’s slow in the cities. Shimla has a trend where voting picks up slowly,” Bhardwaj said after casting his vote. The BJP leader has been a four-time legislator from Shimla Urban and this time he is contesting from nearby Kasumpti, which has remained a Congress citadel.

Leader of opposition Mukesh Agnihotri exercised his franchise at Haroli in Una while the Congress campaign committee head Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu voted in Nadaun.

Upper Himachal sees a high turnout

The upper-Himachal region, which saw a massive farmers’ protest last year, primarily in the apple belt, registered a heavy turnout.

Comprising 34 constituencies of Shimla, Mandi, Kullu,

Solan, Sirmaur, Kinnaur and Lahaul-Spiti, the approximate voter turnout in the upper region was more than 67% till 5 pm and the figures are likely to cross 75 % mark as the voting was still underway in many areas.

The economy of the upper region primarily depends on fruit cultivation.

Compared to it the voter turnout was marginally low in the lower Himachal, including Kangra, Una, Hamirpur, Bilaspur and some parts of Mandi, the average polling percentage was 65% till the filing of the report.

In the lower region farming, government jobs and the army services are the bases of the economy.

Direct fight between BJP, Congress

There are 412 candidates in the fray and an estimated 55,92,828 voters are expected to exercise their franchise in the state. Of the total, 28,54,945 are men and 27,37,845 are women voters.

The BJP and Congress are contesting all 68 assembly seats.

The BJP built its campaign on the strength of its double-engine growth with development projects undertaken by the state with the centre’s backing. The Congress rolled out 10 guarantees by promising the restoration of the OPS, five lakh jobs and ₹1,500 a month to women.

Apart from Aam Aadmi Party, which is contesting 67 seats, other parties in the fray include the Bahujan Samajwadi Party (53 seats), Rashtriya Devbhoomi Party (29 seats) Communist Party of India (Marxist) (11 seats), Himachal Jan Kranti Party (6 seats), the Hindu Samaj Party (3 seats) and Swabhiman Party (3 seats), while the Himachal Janata Party, Bharatiya Veer Dal, Sainik Samaj Party, Rashtriya Lok Niti Party and the Communist Party of India are contesting on one seat each. There are 99 independent candidates in the fray.

Polling peaceful: CEO

Chief electoral officer Maneesh Garg on Saturday said the election process remained peaceful in the state where voters turned out in large numbers even in the snow-bound regions.

He also thanked all categories of voters, including the first-time, elderly, women and PwD voters, for contributing to the democratic process.

Garg said due to effective enforcement by all agencies, recovery of nearly ₹60 crore has been made since the announcement of the polls on October 14 as compared to the seizure of about ₹10 crore in the 2017 Vidhan Sabha elections. At least 1,013 complaints were received on C-vigil of which, corrective measures were taken in 861 complaints.