Anti-incumbency, corruption charges trouble Congress as BJP tries to paper over internal rivalry
After making an impressive comeback in Uttarakhand a few months ago, BJP is betting big on another bordering hill state, Himachal Pradesh, which goes to polls on November 9.
Like Uttarakhand, Himachal, which has a history of throwing out incumbent governments every five years, is also under Congress rule, where its old war horse Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh is battling age and serious corruption charges.
Barring Punjab, where it was a junior partner in alliance government headed by Akali Dal, BJP has done well in states, where ever it fought Congress as the main rival. BJP, which had won 26 of 68 seats in the state in last elections, has fixed a target of 50-plus seats this time.
While Congress is pitching for 'Mission Repeat' in the 2017 Assembly polls, BJP is confident that the alternate mandate trend in the hill state will continue. It has taken steps to address the issue of internal dissension, placating different sections. The saffron party's confidence also stems from the fact that it had won all the four seats in 2014 Lok Sabha polls in the state with substantial margins.
Congress, which has dismissed the cases against Virbhadra Singh as "political vendetta", is hopeful that the "political witch-hunt" pitch by Raja would help create a sympathy wave and could be counter productive for the BJP.
The other side, however, feels that the charges against the Chief Minister are too serious to create any sympathy wave for him. But there are clear indications that the BJP would not like to see the CM being arrested before the polls, which some apprehend, may boomerang.
Singh, 82, is a five-term Chief Minister, the fulcrum of Congress politics in the state. He has many a time forced the Congress top leadership to give in to his demands in the affairs of Himachal Pradesh.
Hence Raja is once again the face of Congress for the assembly poll notwithstanding his recent run in with state Congress chief Sukhvinder Singh Sukhoo. Senior Congress leader Anand Sharma's rivalry with the Raja is already too well known. In a recent election meeting, AICC general secretary Ambika Soni urged party workers "remain united" to achieve ensure that the party retains power in the state. This could be the last election Congress is fighting under his leadership.
BJP is investing hugely in its Union Minister JP Nadda but has not declared any CM candidate so far unlike Congress.
Effort has also been made to keep on board former chief minister and Leader of Opposition, Prem Kumar Dhumal, but internal rivalry within the party is a challenge for it. For Congress, besides the cases against the Chief Minister, the anti-incumbency factor could also create some trouble. BJP has also taken out a 'Parivartan Yatra' in the state.
The party, which has two Thakur Chief Ministers – Trivendra Singh Rawat in Uttarakhand and Yogi Aditya Nath in UP – hopes to gain from them in Himachal as well.
As the battle gets closer, PM Modi is visiting state on October 3, began the party's poll campaign with a public rally and laying foundation stone of a Rs 1,350 crore AIIMS project at Bilaspur, an IIT and a steel plant, making development a poll pitch there. Modi urged people to throw out the "government on bail", a veiled reference to various cases against Chief Minister and his family members.
The same week, Rahul addressed a rally in Mandi district, declaring Virbhadra as Congress' CM face and alleging that Modi government's economic policies have created unemployment.
Assembly elections in the hill state of Himachal Pradesh will be held in a single phase on November 9 and the results will be declared on December 18.
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