Janjivan Bureau / Shimla : With the Congress emerging victorious in Himachal Pradesh, state party president Pratibha Singh is considered a key frontrunner for the chief minister’s post, closely followed by former party chief Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu and outgoing CLP leader Mukesh Agnihotri.
The Congress on Thursday won 40 seats in the 68-member Assembly in the hill state which maintained its tradition of not voting any incumbent government to power since 1985.
Deciding on the chief ministerial face who can bind the party going forward is the immediate challenge for the Congress.
State party president Pratibha Singh is considered a key frontrunner for the chief minister’s post, closely followed by former party chief Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu and outgoing CLP leader Mukesh Agnihotri.
Former Himachal Congress chief Kuldeep Rathore, who won from Theog, said the party observers are reaching here and a meeting of elected MLAs would be held.
Congress leader Vikramaditya Singh, son of late chief minister Virbhadra Singh, told reporters here that “collective will of MLAs will be taken and then observers will convey the same to the high command”.
Replying to a question, Singh said, “Whatever high command decides will be acceptable to us all”.
“Post is not important for us. What is important is the promises we made to people we have to fulfil them and we are committed to doing that,” he said.
To a question, he said the MLAs and the high command had to take the decision on whom they wanted to be the CM.
He, however, added that soon they would stake claim to form the government and the next government would be formed in the next two to three days.
AICC in-charge of Himachal Pradesh Rajeev Shukla had on Thursday said the Congress was happy that it is getting an opportunity to form the government in the state and asserted that the party would do everything to fulfil the 10 guarantees made to the people of the state and would provide better governance to people.
“The newly-elected Congress MLAs would meet in Shimla on Friday and decide on electing the new legislature party leader,” Shukla had told on Thursday.
Sources said the MLAs are likely to pass a one-line resolution authorising Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge to decide the CLP leader. This had been the tradition in the Congress party, they said.
The party’s two observers — Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel and senior leader from Haryana Bhupinder Singh Hooda — along with Shukla are arriving in the state capital where all the party MLAs have been called.
While Shukla is AICC in charge of Himachal, Baghel was appointed senior observer for the polls.
‘This victory is yours’: Son Vikramaditya Singh attributes Congress victory in Himachal Pradesh to late Virbhadra Singh
Deciding on the chief ministerial face who can bind the party going forward is the immediate challenge for the Congress.
The newly-elected MLAs would meet soon to decide on their leader.
Though Pratibha Singh did not contest the assembly election and is not an MLA, she had campaigned extensively across the state. Singh is presently the Mandi MP after she won in the bye-election from outgoing chief minister Jairam Thakur’s home district.
She also carries the legacy of former chief minister Virbhadra Singh, who steered the Congress in the state for over four decades.
Singh, party sources claimed, has the support of a majority of MLAs who have owed their allegiance to Virbhadra Singh who remained the Congress’ undisputed leader in the hill state for long.
Pratibha Singh’s son Vikramaditya has been elected as an MLA from Shimla rural and is also among the hopefuls, even though many consider him too young for the top post.
The other CM aspirants are Sukhu, an MLA from Nadaun, and Agnihotri, who was elected from Haroli. Both are hopeful that the party high command would recognise their work as former PCC chief and as Congress Legislature Party leader.
Agnihotri claims that he put forth the party’s position strongly in the state assembly as CLP leader and highlighted BJP’s “misgovernance” during the last five years. Agnihotri is a Brahmin leader, while Sukhu hails from the dominant Thakur community in the state.
Former PCC chief Kuldeep Singh Rathore, who won from Theog in a multi-cornered contest, is also a CM hopeful and is claiming that he brought the faction-ridden party together in the last few years.
Rathore was replaced a few months ago with Pratibha Singh as the head of the Himachal unit.
Some other hopefuls like six-time MLA Asha Kumari and former PCC chief Kaul Singh Thakur lost the election this time.
Interestingly, several Congress leaders had contested the elections in the hope that they would be the party’s chief ministerial face. This even helped them garner enough support in their respective constituencies.
During the election campaign, Home Minister Amit Shah and other BJP leaders had taken a swipe at the Congress over its chief minister-hopefuls.