Dehra: Hoshiar Singh, after joining the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), managed to secure only 341 extra votes compared to his previous tally in the 2022 general elections. In the recent by-elections, Singh garnered 22,860 votes, slightly less than the 22,997 votes he had received previously when running as an independent candidate.
This slight increase highlights a surprising lack of traction for Singh despite aligning with the BJP, widely regarded as the world’s largest political party.
According to field sources, Bikram Thakur, the former Industries Minister and MLA of the nearby Jaswan-Paragpur constituency, was the only party leader who actively supported Singh. In contrast, Ramesh Dhawala, a well-known BJP figure, did not appear to mobilize support for Singh. This was evident in areas under Dhawala’s influence, where the Congress Party secured more votes.
For instance, in Dhawala’s panchayat, Congress outperformed the BJP by approximately 479 votes.
Despite the efforts of high-profile BJP leaders such as former Chief Minister Jairam Thakur, state party president Dr. Rajeev Bindal, and former minister Vipin Parmar, their visits to Dehra failed to generate significant support for Singh. Even the involvement of former Union Minister and current Member of Parliament Anurag Thakur, who campaigned in select areas, did not provide a substantial boost.
In the by-election, Hoshiar Singh was defeated by Kamlesh Kumari, the wife of Chief Minister Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu, by a margin of 9,399 votes. This defeat stands in stark contrast to Singh’s victory in the 2022 elections, where he had won by a margin of 4,024 votes against Congress leader Rajesh Sharma.
