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BJP stumbles at Himalayan hurdle
Dashing BJP's hope of replicating Gujarat in HP, the Congress won simple majority by wresting 40 seats in the 68-member House.
Stymying BJP's attempt to repeat Gujarat, the Congress on Saturday bounced back to power in Himachal Pradesh securing simple majority bagging 40 seats in the 68-member Assembly.
The BJP, which had led a wafer-thin majority coalition government, could win only 16 seats with a number of its stalwarts, including 15 ministers, Speaker Ghulab Chand Thakur and state unit president Jai Kishan Sharma, biting the dust.
The Himachal Vikas Congress, whose three members provided life support to the BJP in forming the previous government, was also routed with its president Sukh Ram being the sole winner.
Ram vilas Paswan-led Lok Janshakti Party and Himachal Loktantrik Morcha won one seat each and independents six. Parties like CPI(M), CPI BSP, SP and NCP drew a blank.
BJP suffered a net loss of 19 seats while the Congress, which had 26 seats, gained 14.
Two BJP ministers Mansa Ram and Rakash Chowdhary who were elected on HVC ticket in 1998 but later defected to the Congress and again contested as HVC nominees lost the elections.
Polling for three constituencies in the state would be held in June due to inclement weather.
The impressive march of Congress to victory was led by leader of the opposition Virbhadra Singh and PCC chief Vidya Stokes, who won from Rohroo and Kumarsain respectively.
Of the 20 ministers, only five, including Chief Minister P K Dhumal, emerged victorious.
Education Minister I D Dhiman, Irrigation and Public Health Minister Romesh Dhawala and Ministers of State Ravi Inder Singh Ravi and Hari Narain Singh are among winners.
Prominent losers of BJP include Deputy Speaker Ram Dass Malangar, high profile Excise Minister Parveen Sharma, senior ministers Kishori Lal, Roop Singh, J P Nadda, state ministers R R Kaundal, Mohan Lal, Karan Singh, Rajan Sushant, Narinder Bragata and Roop Dass Kashyap.
The BJP suffered major losses in Kangra district losing eight seats held by it with Transport Minister Krishan Kapoor and Revenue Minister Rajan Sushant conceding defeat. The party retained Thural, Rajgir and Jwalamukhi seat and wrested Jaswan seat from Congress. It lost the Sulah, Shahpur, Dharamsala, Baijnath, Gangath Jwali, Nurpur and Kangra to Congress while a BJP rebel Naveen Dhiman defeated the party's official nominee in Pragpur.
BJP lost both Shimla and Kusumpti it had held in Shimla district, retained Solan and Nalagarh in Solan, lost Chintpurni and Santokhgarh in Una district. However, it wrested Una seat from Congress and retained Kutlehar.
Prominent Congress losers include former ministers Viplov Thakur, Satya Prakash Thakur and Kashmir Singh, Kangra DCC chief Milkhi Ram Goma and senior leader Kush Parmar.
BJP retained two seats in Mandi district but it lost the Sundernagar seat. It wrested the Balh seat from HVC. Congress which had only four seats in Mandi district increased its tally to six with former Speaker Kaul Singh and former minister Rangilla Ram registering impressive wins.
HVC supremo Sukh Ram, who had won from Mandi by over 19,000 votes in 1998, reatined the seat with a reduced margin of over 12,000 votes.
Mohinder singh, who had won the 1998 elections on HVC ticket but later floated his own party after being dropped from the cabinet, retained Dharampur seat in Mandi district.
The Congress, which had won all the five seats in Sirmaur district in 1998, suffered a jolt losing prestigious Nahan seat to Lok Janshakti Party and Paonta seat to the BJP.
The BJP suffered similar reverses in Hamirpur district, where it had won all the five seats last time, losing Hamirpur and Nadaun seats to Congress. Congress wrested Bhatiyat and Rajnagar seats in Chamba district and Banjar seat in Kullu from the BJP.
BJP and Congress rebels fared well with Subhash Chand, Rakesh Verma and Naveen Dhiman defeating official BJP nominees in Chopal, Theog and Pragpur constituencies and Congress rebels Sohan Lal, Kuldeep Singh Pathania and Biru Ram winning from Kusumpti, Bhatiyat and Gherwin constituencies.
Of the 10 women candidates fielded by the Congress, four, including HPCC president Vidya Stokes and All India Mahila Congress president Chandresh Kumari, have won, while all the five women candidates fielded by the BJP have lost. The strength of women members would be reduced from six to four in the new Assembly.
Of the 61 members of the dissolved House who had contested the elections, 31 have been reelected.
There were eight candidates from erstwhile ruling families in the fray of which only three have won. The winners include former Chief Minister V B Singh, former minister Asha Kumari and Chandresh Kumari.
