Congress may announce candidates for bypoll to 3 Himachal Assembly seats today
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CM Sukhu holds discussions with party’s central leadership over phone
TNR Desk
After long delay, the Congress is expected to announce its candidates for the remaining three of the six Assembly seats where crucial byelection are to be held on June 1.
Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu reportedly engaged in extensive deliberations with Congress national general secretary (organisation) KC Venugopal and party’s state affairs in-charge Rajiv Shukla over the phone on Wednesday evening, discussing the names of candidates. However, the final approval would be granted by national president Mallikarjun Kharge.
Nomination to start on May 7
The political arena in Himachal Pradesh has been electrified since the BJP’s decision to field six rebel and former Congress MLAs on March 26. Despite the passage of the entire month of April, the Congress has yet to nominate candidates for the upcoming by-elections on three Assembly seats, namely Barsar in Hamirpur district, Dharamshala in Kangra and Lahaul-Spiti. The nomination process is slated to commence in five days, intensifying the urgency within the Congress ranks.
Frontrunners for tickets
In Dharamshala, former Mayor Devinder Jaggi, party bypoll candidate Vijay Inder Karan, BJP rebel Rakesh Chaudhary and Harbhajan are vying for the tickets. However, with Chaudhary’s allegiance still unconfirmed, apprehensions loom over the fate of his candidature.
In Barsar, discussions swirl around the potential candidacy of former MLA Manjit Singh Dogra, Sanjeev Sharma and Gyan Chand. Dogra, a seasoned politician, has previously clinched victory both as an independent candidate and under the Congress banner.
Meanwhile, Sharma’s commendable performance as an independent contender in the 2022 elections has bolstered his prospects.
In Lahaul-Spiti, the Congress is contemplating fielding BJP rebel Ramlal Markanda as its candidate despite lingering concerns regarding potential dissent. Party spokesperson Anil Sehgal, zila parishad chairman Anuradha Rana and former MLA Raghuveer Singh Thakur are also emerging as formidable contenders for the ticket.
The Congress recently announced Vivek Sharma as its candidate from Kutlehar, Captain Ranjit Singh from Sujanpur and Rakesh Kalia from Gagret.
