Himachal Polls 2022: Fate Of 412 Candidates Sealed In EVMs As BJP Eyes History, Congress A Comeback

Himachal Pradesh Assembly Elections 2022: The polling that started on a moderate note in the morning, with only 19% voting being recorded in the first three hours, picked up as the day advanced.

Representational Image. (Source: File Photo)

Shimla: The fate of 412 candidates was sealed in the EVMs as over 75 percent voting was recorded in Himachal Pradesh that went to polls on Saturday to elect representatives for 68 assembly seats. The polling that started on a moderate note in the morning, with only 19 percent voting being recorded in the first three hours, picked up as the day advanced. The final poll percentage will go up as postal ballots will also add to the figure.

National BJP president JP Nadda, Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur, Union minister Anurag Thakur, former chief ministers Prem Kumar Dhumal and Shanta Kumar, state BJP chief Suresh Kashyap, Himachal Congress president Pratibha Singh, leader of the opposition Mukesh Agnihotri and other prominent leaders cast their votes in their home districts.

The BJP and the Congress contested on all the 68 assembly constituencies, while Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) fielded candidates on 67 seats, followed by BSP on 53, Rashtriya Devbhoomi Party on 29, Communist Party of India (Marxist) on 11, Himachal Jan Kranti Party on 6, and other parties on 9 seats. There were 99 independents too, including 20 rebels from the BJP and seven from the Congress.

Though the AAP tried to emerge as the third player in Himachal, the contest in most places seemed to be two-cornered, with a fierce battle seen between the ruling BJP and the opposition Congress. While the BJP is eyeing a history by returning to power, something no party has achieved so far in the history of the state, the Congress has been saying the tradition will continue and voters will oust the ruling party as always.

Lahaul-Spiti's Tashigang, World's Highest Polling Station, Records 98% Polling

Out of the 412 candidates in the fray, only 24 are female. The total number of eligible voters in the state is 55,92,828, including 28,54,945 men and 27,37,845 women and 38 third gender voters. As many as 1,93,106 new voters in the age group of 18-19 years have been added this year, while as many as 1,21,409 voters are above 80 years, and 56,501 are in the persons with disability category.

The maximum number of 11 candidates in the fray are from Joginder Nagar assembly constituency, while the minimum three candidates each are in Churah, Lahaul-Spiti and Drang constituencies.

The youngest candidate, Piyush Kanga (26), contested from Bilaspur assembly constituency as an independent. Among party candidates, Chaitanya (28) of the Congress party is the youngest, and he contested from Gagret. Col. Dhani Ram Shandil (82), the oldest candidate, is also from the Congress, and he entered the fray from Solan. 

Tashigang, the world's highest polling station located in the tribal Lahaul-Spiti district, recorded the highest polling of 98 per cent with 51 out of the 52 voters exercising their franchise.

In the rest of the state, highest polling of 95.2 percent was recorded in Doon assembly constituency while Shimla (Urban) registered 62.53 per cent polling. Shillai in Sirmaur recorded 84.1 percent polling while Seraj constituency, from where CM Jairam Thakur is seeking reelection, polled 82 percent votes, followed by Sri Naina Deviji that saw 80 per cent polling.

Complaints of snags in EVMs were reported from some polling booths where the exercise had to be halted for sometime. The polling went off peacefully and no untoward incident was reported from any part of the state.

Prakash Chandra Lohumi is a veteran jounalist who has covered Himachal Pradesh for over five decades.

[Disclaimer: The opinions, beliefs, and views expressed by the various authors and forum participants on this website are personal.]