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How rebellion stemmed from Sukhu’s own backyard
Six of the nine represent assembly constituencies in Hamirpur; Nadaun assembly constituency, represented by Sukhu, also comes under the same parliamentary constituency
The rebellion against the Congress government in Himachal Pradesh, sparked by nine legislators, including six Congress MLAs who cross-voted in favour of the Bharatiya Janata party in Rajya Sabha polls on Tuesday, has its epicentre in chief minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu’s backyard, the parliamentary constituency of Hamirpur.
Six of the nine represent assembly constituencies in Hamirpur. Nadaun assembly constituency, represented by Sukhu, also comes under the same parliamentary constituency.
The rebels, who voted for the BJP candidate in the Rajya Sabha election, and whose action has jeopardised the very survival of the Sukhu government -- it has also highlighted the deep fissures within the state Congress -- was spearheaded by Sujanpur MLA Rajinder Rana, and Dharamsala MLA Sudhir Sharma. Both , HT learns, were unhappy at not being made ministers in the state cabinet, and enlisted support from other MLAs, who were reportedly unhappy with the functioning of the government as well.
The other four Congress legislators who went against the party line are Inder Dutt Lakhanpal from Barsar, Ravi Thakur from Lahaul-Spiti, Chaitanya Sharma from Gagret, and Davinder Kumar Bhutto from Kutlehar. The assembly constituencies of Gagret, Barsar and Kutlehar also fall under Hamirpur parliamentary constituency.
Interestingly, the assembly segments represented by Bhutto and Inder Dutt Lakhanpal are adjoining to the constituency represented by the chief minister.
The three independent MLAs who voted in favour of BJP are Ashish Sharma, Hoshiyar Singh and K.L Thakur who represent Hamirpur, Dehra and Nalagarh assembly constituencies. Hamirpur and Dehra assembly segments also fall under Hamirpur parliamentary constituency.
Notably, the Haroli assembly constituency of Una district which is currently represented by deputy chief minister Mukesh Agnihotri, also falls under Hamirpur parliamentary constituency.
Why did the MLAs rebel?
People familiar with the matter said Sukhu ignored senior party leaders and MLAs for ministerial positions.
Rana recently criticised the functioning of the government under Sukhu over the issue of giving cabinet ranks to non-elected people. And Sharma voiced concerns regarding the state’s finances and also criticised the Sukhu government for not depositing ₹30 crore for the land transfer to construct the campus of Central University of Himachal Pradesh at Jadrangal in Dharamshala assembly constituency.
Other MLAs had also voiced their dissatisfaction over the functioning of the government with Sukhu at helm. To be sure, no one expected their criticism to result in such precipitate action.
The fallout for the Congress
With the Himachal Pradesh Congress in shock and chief minister Sukhu’s own parliamentary constituency in disarray, the picture appears grim for the Congress party in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. Currently, the Congress holds only one parliamentary seat out of the four in Himachal. Hamirpur parliamentary constituency itself is represented by BJP leader and Union minister Anurag Thakur.
Professor Ashutosh Kumar from the department of political science at Panjab University (PU), Chandigarh, said: “The unfolding drama reflects poorly on the leadership of CM Sukhu. He should have been vigilant about the simmering rebellion within his party ranks but appears to have been unprepared ”
Kumar added that perhaps the choice of an outsider as a candidate may have exacerbated discontent among party leaders. “It also showed poor judgment on the part of the party high command which should be aware that its command no longer is binding on the party rank and file.”
Meanwhile, state BJP spokesperson Sanjay Sharma criticised the functioning of the Sukhu and said that recent events expose flaws in his leadership. “Sukhu even failed to appease his own party MLAs, including some from his own parliamentary constituency. These MLAs are disillusioned with Sukhu’s governance and have struggled to justify their actions to the people they represented,” he said.
