Nov 12, 2022: A Polling Booth for 52 voters living in a hamlet in Himalayas
November 5, 2022: Prime Minister Modi campaigning in SOLAN, HP
Saturday, 12th November 2022: About 5.5 million voters are scheduled to vote and select the party, which will form the Government for the next 5 years in the mountainous State of Himachal Pradesh.
Since 1985, the two national parties of India, Indian National Congress and Bhartiya Janata Party have ruled the State alternately. The voters have never given the mandate to the incumbent and have always given their mandate to the other party. BJP has ruled the State since 2017 and Jai Ram Thakur has been the Chief Minister.
(Please visit the Deccan Herald for a brief electoral history of Himachal Pradesh at https://tinyurl.com/2eju8t2f )
This election has been fought by BJP under the leadership of Jairam Thakur, who claims that he has done good work and he is likely to be voted in again, bucking the four-decade long trend of alternating INC and BJP parties for ruling the State. As a special initiative, BJP has brought out a manifesto for women, promising 33% reservation for women in government jobs in Himachal Pradesh.
An important leader, who is in the fray as a member of INC, is Vikramaditya Singh. His father Virbhadhra Singh had been the Chief Minister of HP. Virbhadra Singh was called ‘Raja Sahib’ since he was the 122nd Raja of Bushahr, a princely state, which merged in India in 1947.
This year, a third party called AAP has also thrown its hat in the ring and it has now a candidate in each of the 68 ridings of the State.
One interesting piece of information: Out of 7,884 polling booths, set up by the Election Commission of India, one is at a height of 15, 256 feet in Tashigang. It is located in the sparsely populated mountainous area of Kaza in the district of Lahaul-Spiti. The booth will cater to 52 voters of the area.
For more information about the manifestoes of the three parties, one can visit Hindustan Times at https://tinyurl.com/wt85y32n