Himachal byelections: Congress to conduct fresh survey on these 4 seats to decide ‘winnable’ candidates
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TNR Desk
The BJP has announced its candidates for the six Assembly seats in Himachal Pradesh 23 days ago while the Congress is still deliberating over its choices. The Congress is expected to finalise its candidates within the next week as it plans to conduct another survey for tickets on four Assembly seats. Based on the latest survey report, the Congress will determine its candidates in Barsar, Gagret, Sujanpur and Lahaul-Spiti.
However, the tickets of Vivek Sharma in Kutlehar and Devendra Jaggi in Dharamshala are nearly confirmed. In Barsar, with Congress rebel and former MLA ID Lakhanpal and Rajinder Rana in Sujanpur having won three consecutive elections, the Congress is seeking a strong second-line leader. A similar situation exists in Gagret and Lahaul-Spiti. In Barsar, former MLA Manjit Singh Dogra’s name is being discussed alongside Gyan Chand and Sanjeev Sharma, who contested as independents in 2022. Sanjeev, who secured 15,252 votes as an independent in the last election, is also being considered for the Congress ticket.
For the Gagret seat, the Congress is considering former MLA Rakesh Kalia, who recently left the BJP, and Kuldeep Kumar. Raman Jaswal, a zila parishad member, is also a potential candidate. Similarly, in Sujanpur, where Rana’s dominance has left the Congress searching for a viable candidate, former MLA Kuldeep Pathania, former district president Naresh Thakur, and Ravindra Verma are among the contenders.
The situation is most uncertain in Lahaul-Spiti, where state Congress leaders are considering nominating BJP rebel Ramlal Markanda, despite opposition from local leaders. Other potential candidates include party spokesperson Anil Sehgal, zila parishad chairman Anuradha Rana and former MLA Raghuveer Singh Thakur.
The names of Vivek Sharma for Kutlehar seat in Una district and Devendra Jaggi for the Dharamshala seat in Kangra are close to being finalised. However, their tickets are pending approval from the Congress central election committee. In Dharamshala, BJP rebels Rakesh Chaudhary and Harbhajan are also being considered for tickets.
