Rebellion, lack of focus onstate issues behind BJP loss

The party engaged its leaders and cadres in organisational programmes, giving them little time to connect with voters, political analysts.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ran a high-decibel campaign in Himachal Pradesh, pitching a battery of star campaigners led by the party’s national president Jagat Prakash Nadda in his home state, yet in the end it fell way short of the majority mark of 35.

The BJP faced a rebellion on 21 seats which also included national president JP Nadda’s home seat of Bilaspur Sadar. (Agencies)

The party focused more on national issues, including the abrogation of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir and the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya. The party in its manifestoes promised to introduce the Uniform Civil Code, even though the state has a very small non-Hindu population. Jai Ram Thakur, who was not projected as the chief ministerial face, limited his presence to Mandi district. The party focused on its strong cadre base and its leaders for bucking anti-incumbency. The chief minister focused more on organisational affairs than running the government, party insiders said after the results. The BJP campaign also began to lose steam soon after ticket distribution.

Rebel factor hits hard

The party high command failed to quell an internal rebellion. The BJP faced a rebellion on 21 seats which also included national president JP Nadda’s home seat of Bilaspur Sadar. Gauging the situation in the BJP, government employees in the state, known for their ability to sense tilting political scales, became more vocal on their demand for restoration of the Old Pension Scheme. A lack of support from the employee segment dealt a harsh blow to the party’s chances.

The saffron also party denied tickets to 11 of its sitting MLAs to buck the anti-incumbency trend but unlike Gujarat where the party changed the tickets of the entire cabinet, it fielded cabinet ministers in Himachal. Barring power minister Sukh Ram and industries minister Bikram Singh, all the ministers lost the elections.

The BJP government was also unable to take timely measures to pacify agitated apple growers. Apple cultivation contributes around 13.5% of gross domestic product in Himachal Pradesh, which has a ₹6,000 crore economy. There are 17 assembly segments where apples are grown. The farmers’ protests spilled all over the apple-growing regions in the state. Voters in these regions did not side with the BJP this time.

No impact of ST status to Hatti

BJP approved tribal status for the Hatti community in the trans-Giri region of Sirmaur district, which is spread over four assembly segments Pacchad, Renuka, Shillai and Paonta Sahib. But not all communities were included. A pick-and-choose strategy was adopted and consequently, the move boomeranged. The BJP won Pacchad and Paonta Sahib but lost the other two.

The party engaged its leaders and cadres in organisational programmes, giving them little time to connect with voters, political analysts. Central-aided schemes were not propagated to the desired extent among the people. The party also went wrong in ignoring former chief minister Prem Kumar Dhumal, who wields considerable influence across the state. The BJP lost all five seats in Hamirpur district. Other issues such as inflation and unemployment also hurt the party’s prospects.

“The BJP campaign was ill focused... rather than engaging on the state issues, the party leaders were harping on central issue,” said Ramesh Chauhan, professor, Himachal Pradesh University political science department.