Himachal CM Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu's Wife Kamlesh Thakur To Contest Bypoll From Dehra

Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu's wife Kamlesh Thakur will contest by-elections from Dehra, Himachal Pradesh as a Congress candidate.

Himachal CM Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu with wife Kamlesh Thakur. (File Photo) ( Image Source :Ankush Dobhal )

Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu's wife Kamlesh Thakur will be contesting by-elections from Dehra, Himachal Pradesh as a Congress candidate. Kamlesh Thakur hails from Jaswan Pragpur, near Dehra, which could have been the reason for his candidature. Although new to electoral politics, she has been active in various political alongside her husband since he became Chief Minister.

There previously were speculations about her running for the Hamirpur Lok Sabha seat. 

Himachal Pradesh CM Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu's wife Kamlesh Thakur to contest by-elections from Dehra, Himachal Pradesh as Congress candidate. pic.twitter.com/ZvxRj575oO

— ANI (@ANI) June 18, 2024

The Dehra seat has been eluded Congress's grasp. In 2012, BJP's Ravinder Singh Ravi defeated Congress's Viplav Thakur. In 2017, Hoshiar Singh won as an independent, defeating Ravinder Singh Ravi. In 2022, Hoshiar Singh again won as an independent, defeating BJP's Ramesh Chand. This time, Hoshiar Singh contested the by-election on a BJP ticket, while Congress fielded Kamlesh Thakur in an effort to secure the seat. 

After a two-month campaign, the fate of Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu's government for 25 nominees in six Assembly byelections in Himachal was set to be decided on June 1. The byelections coincided with elections for four Lok Sabha seats: Hamirpur, Mandi, Kangra, and Shimla, and six Assembly segments: Sujanpur, Dharamshala, Lahul and Spiti, Barsar, Gagret, and Kutlehar.

The Assembly seats became vacant following the disqualification of Congress rebels who defied a party whip during the budget vote to support the government. These legislators supported the BJP in the Rajya Sabha polls on February 29, later joined the BJP, and would contest the byelections on BJP tickets from their respective segments. Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu criticised the rebels, calling them "bikau" (sold out) and "kale naag" (snakes), urging voters to punish them. 

Political leaders held large rallies and corner meetings, especially in constituencies with simultaneous Assembly byelections and Lok Sabha elections. Local issues dominated the campaign due to the Assembly byelection.