The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on May 31 won elections in three of four Municipal Corporations in Himachal Pradesh. The party won the polls in Dharamshala, Mandi and Solan, while Congress won Palampur corporation.
The BJP swept the Dharamshala Municipal Corporation, winning 11 seats out of a total of 17. Congress won five seats, whereas one was secured by an independent candidate.
In Mandi, the BJP won 12 of the 14 wards, while Congress secured one. In Solan, where pollsters were predicting a tough contest, the BJP managed to win 10 out of 17 seats, followed by Congress with six seats, and one seat was bagged by an Independent. The Congress emerged victorious in Palampur, retaking control by winning 11 out of 15 wards, while the BJP scored victory in four seats.
The voting for the civic body elections in Himachal Pradesh was held on May 17.
Leader of Opposition in Himachal Pradesh Assembly, Jairam Thakur, on Monday hailed the BJP’s victory in three of the four municipal corporation elections, saying that the people have decided to uproot the Congress government in the state.
Noting the significance of the poll results ahead of the 2027 Assembly elections, Jairam Thakur accused the Congress government of postponing the urban local body elections by invoking the Disaster Act, and claimed it knew election results would not be in its favour.
Thakur said, “The elections for Panchayati Raj institutions in Himachal Pradesh and, along with them, the municipal body elections that were scheduled for November were deliberately postponed by the Chief Minister because they knew the election results would not be in their favour. Therefore, the Disaster Act was imposed in Himachal Pradesh. We went to the High Court, and a decision came against the government there. The government went to the Supreme Court, and then a decision came that the elections for Panchayati Raj institutions and municipal bodies in Himachal Pradesh must be completed by May 31.”
He claimed that the Congress “wouldn’t be found in Himachal Pradesh,” if the Assembly polls are held now.
“The Chief Minister’s assessment in this matter turned out to be correct. He knew the outcome would be against them, and that’s exactly what happened. The plain truth is that the people of Himachal have already decided for the Congress that this government must be uprooted. As of today’s date, if (assembly) elections were to be held, the Congress wouldn’t be found in Himachal Pradesh,” the BJP leader said.
The local body elections were crucial for both the BJP and Congress as they will lock horns in the Assembly elections next year.
