SHIMLA: Himachal Pradesh Congress leaders have been leaving no stone unturned to ensure the victory of Vinod Sultanpuri, the party’s candidate for the Shimla (SC) parliamentary constituency.
The Congress government has given significant representation to legislators from the Lok Sabha constituency, appointing five ministers, three chief parliamentary secretaries, a Deputy Speaker of the Assembly and over half a dozen chairpersons and vice-chairpersons of various corporations and government boards.
All these leaders are learnt to have been tasked with securing lead from their respective Assembly constituencies for Sultanpuri, Kasauli MLA who is fighting his maiden Lok Sabha election. His father KD Sultanpuri was a six-term MP from the constituency, having won consecutively in 1980, 1984, 1989, 1991, 1996 and 1998.
The high stakes are evident from the fact that the ministers and other appointees have intensified their efforts during the campaign. Rohit Thakur, the legislator from Jubbal-Kotkhai, holds a cabinet position, so do Vikramaditya Singh (Shimla Rural) and Anirudh Singh (Kasumpti).
Dhani Ram Shandil from Solan and Harshvardhan Chauhan from Sirmaur are also ministers. Sanjay Awasthy, legislator from Arki, serves both as a CPS and the acting president of the Himachal Congress. Ramkumar from Doon and Mohan Lal Brakta from Rohru also serve as CPS. Vinay Kumar, the legislator from Shillai, is the Deputy Speaker of the Assembly.
With a strong presence of Congress legislators in the Shimla parliamentary constituency, these leaders are under significant pressure to deliver a victory for Sultanpuri. Upper Shimla, a known Congress stronghold, is expected to play a crucial role in the election. Congress leaders are optimistic about gaining leads in all Assembly constituencies in the area.
The campaign is marked by Congress leaders’ confidence in their ability to defeat the BJP candidate, Suresh Kashyap. The Congress is targeting Kashyap for the “lack of development” in upper Shimla region during his tenure and his absence from the region after the election. The political atmosphere is charged with accusations and counter-accusations as both parties vie for dominance.
