Kangra Congress leaders bury the hatchet, meet over dinner

Senior Congress leaders in Kangra appeared to have buried their hatchet and met over dinner in Palampur on Monday night resolving to put up a united fight against the ruling BJP in the upcoming general assembly elections

Senior Congress leaders in Kangra appeared to have buried their hatchet and met over dinner in Palampur on Monday night resolving to put up a united fight against the ruling BJP in the upcoming general assembly elections.

Senior Congress leaders from Kangra, MLAs and candidates in the 2017 assembly elections were at the dinner meeting. Prominent among them were former state party president Viplove Thakur, who currently heads the party’s disciplinary committee. (HT File Photo)

It was for the first time ever since the new Himachal Pradesh Congress committee (HPCC) took over that the Kangra leaders gathered at one place.

The dinner was held at a hotel owned by Congress’ Palampur MLA Ashish Butail.

Senior leaders from the district, MLAs and candidates in the 2017 assembly elections were at the dinner meeting. Prominent among them were former state party president Viplove Thakur, who currently heads the party’s disciplinary committee, former MP Chander Kumar, newly appointed working president of Himachal Congress Pawan Kajal, district president Ajay Mahajan and AICC secretary and former Minister Sudhir Sharma.

AICC secretary Raghubir Singh Bali, former MLA Sanjay Ratan, Ajay Mahajan, Jagjivan Pal, Yadvinder Goma, Kishori Lal and state general secretary Kewal Pathania was also present on the occasion.

At the meeting, AICC co-in-charge of the party affairs in Himachal Sanjay Dutt discussed the strategy for the upcoming assembly elections, draw up a plan to thwart BJP’s mission repeat and most importantly to bury hatchets and put up a united fight against the saffron party’s “politics of divide”, said AICC secretary Sudhir Sharma.

He said they took a vow to support each other and ensure that the party wins maximum numbers in Kangra.

Kangra, the electorally most significant district, which sends 15 legislators to the 68-member state assembly, is also the epicentre of state politics.

With only five months left for the assembly elections, the ruling BJP has already launched an aggressive campaign to consolidate its cadres.

A popular saying in Himachal is that the road to Shimla goes through Kangra. Whichever party wins the maximum seats in Kangra forms the government in the state.

Keeping the electoral significance of Kangra in mind, the opposition Congress has also turned its gaze to the district and Sanjay Dutt has been on a whirlwind tour to the district holding meetings at the block level.

Meanwhile, another senior leader who was present at the dinner, on condition of anonymity said, the “unity meet” was also to drive the message home that Kangra Congress has lost some stalwarts like GS Bali and Sujan Singh Pathania in the recent past, “but we are not diminished”.

“So, this is to our opponents that we are united and fight the battle together,” he said.