Congress wins Himachal polls as state continues anti-incumbency tradition
The Congress has won the Himachal Pradesh Assembly election and is set to return to power after ousting ruling BJP in the hill state which has not voted any incumbent government to power since 1985.
According to the latest updates, the grand old party has won 40 seats while the BJP has bagged 25.
#WATCH | Congress party workers celebrate in Shimla after Congress crosses the majority mark of 35 seats in Himachal Pradesh amid the ongoing counting of the votes in the state.#HimachalPradeshElections pic.twitter.com/1TklhepVnU
— ANI (@ANI) December 8, 2022
Independent candidates have won in three seats, while the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which contested 67 seats, is yet to open its account, the Election Commission said on Thursday. The counting of votes is still on in Himachal.
In Poanta Sahib, Minister Sukh Ram Chaudhary defeated the nearest Congress rival Kirnesh Jing by 8,596 votes. In Mandi district’s Sundernagar, sitting MLA and BJP leader Rakesh Jamwal defeated his nearest Congress rival by 8,125 votes.
Also read: LIVE updates of Gujarat and Himachal Assembly election results
The BJP also won Nurpur seat, with Randhir Singh defeating Congress’s Ajay Mahajan by 18,752 votes.
Anil Sharma, son of former Union minister, the late Sukh Ram, retained his Mandi Sadar seat, defeating his rival from the Congress. Sharma defeated Congress’s Champa Thakur by 10,006 votes, according to the Election Commission.
From Shimla Urban, Congress’s Harish Janartha defeated his nearest BJP rival Sanjay Sood by 3,037 votes.
Leading BJP candidates include Chief Minister Jairam Thakur from Seraj, minister Bikram Singh in Jaswant Paragpur, and Speaker Vipin Singh Parmar in Sullah.
Also read: Gujarat election results will have positive effect on BJP’s prospects in Ktaka: CM Bommai
Congress leader Mukesh Agnihotri, who is the Leader of Opposition in the assembly, has won from Haroli, while former state Congress chief Kuldeep Rathore (Theog), former minister Sudhir Sharma (Dharamshala), and Dhani Ram Shandil (Solan) have won over their rivals.
The other candidates who won include Congress’s Jagat Singh Negi from Kinnaur, late chief minister Virbhadra Singh’s son Vikramaditya Singh from Shimla Rural, and Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu from Nadaun.
Also read: India’s first voter, Negi, dies in Himachal Pradesh
Counting of votes for the 68-member assembly began at 8 am.
The BJP’s slogan this time was “Raj nahin, riwaaj badlega,” which translates to, “the convention will change, not the government.”
For the Congress, a victory in Himachal Pradesh is much needed for a revival, as it has been battered by a spate of electoral losses in the past few years.
About 76.44% of voters exercised their franchise on November 12. Altogether, 412 candidates, including 24 women and 99 independents, are in the fray.
The BJP and the Congress contested in all the 68 constituencies, while the AAP fielded candidates in 67 seats, the Bahujan Samaj Party in 53, and the Communist Party of India (Marxist) in 11 seats.
In 2017, the BJP won 44 seats, the Congress 21, and the CPI(M) gained one. Two Independent candidates, too, had won.
(With agency inputs)
