Former chief minister Virbhadra Singh’s wife and Congress nominee from Mandi parliamentary constituency Pratibha Singh filed her nomination papers on Friday amid rousing reception by supporters.
Singh was accompanied by senior leader and former minister Kaul Singh Thakur.
The nomination was followed by a public rally at Mandi town’s famous Seri Manch which was attended by Himachal Pradesh Congress Committee chief Kuldeep Singh Rathore, leader of opposition Mukesh Agnihotri, Asha Kumari, and Shimla (Rural) MLA and Pratibha’s son Vikramaditya Singh.
Two-time MP from Mandi, Pratibha Singh is pitted against Kargil war veteran Khushal Thakur from BJP. The Mandi by-election was necessitated after the death of incumbent MP Ram Swaroop Sharma in April this year.
Addressing a public meeting, Pratibha Singh urged the people of Mandi to vote for Congress. Talking about the BJP nominee, Pratibha said he had done an excellent job in the army, however, this was not an army ground but a political battlefield where the people decided the fate of a candidate.
Speaking on the occasion, Vikramaditya Singh said the by-election was a semifinal to the 2022 assembly elections. He raised the issue of rising prices of edible oils and slammed the BJP governments at the Centre and the state for people’s sufferings.
{{/usCountry}}Speaking on the occasion, Vikramaditya Singh said the by-election was a semifinal to the 2022 assembly elections. He raised the issue of rising prices of edible oils and slammed the BJP governments at the Centre and the state for people’s sufferings.
{{/usCountry}}He said Mandi has lagged behind in development under the current BJP regime and that Congress will fight the elections on the issues of inflation and unemployment.