The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) secured victory in the Municipal Corporation (MC) elections in three out of four civic bodies in Himachal Pradesh, with results declared on Sunday. The BJP emerged victorious in Mandi, Dharamshala, and Solan, while the Congress party retained control of the Palampur Municipal Corporation.
Dharamshala Results
In Dharamshala, the BJP won 11 of the 17 seats, the Congress secured 5 seats, and one seat went to an Independent candidate. Reacting to the party’s win, BJP MLA Sudhir Sharma stated that the victory reflects public anger against the Congress government and growing support for the BJP. He termed the result a clear rejection of the policies and performance of the state government led by Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu. Sharma alleged that the government had failed to address issues concerning employees, youth, women, traders, and the general public.
Solan and Palampur Results
In Solan, the BJP won 10 seats, the Congress secured 6, and an Independent candidate won 1 seat. In Palampur, the Congress secured a majority by winning 11 of the 15 seats, leaving 4 for the BJP.
Mandi Results
In Mandi, the BJP won 12 of the 14 wards, securing a comfortable majority. The Congress managed to win only one ward, while an Independent candidate emerged victorious in another. The BJP's winning candidates in Mandi include Sarita Handa from Purani Mandi, Nirmal from Paddal, Krishna Thakur from Mangwain, Virender Singh Arya from Sanyard, Jitender Kumar from Talyahar, Gurdeep Kaur from Palace Colony-I, Suman from Palace Colony-II, Neha from Suhra, Jitender from Samkhetar, Gagan from Bhagwahan, Rajni Sharma from Thanehra, and Reeta Devi from Dhoundhi. The Congress could only win in the Nela ward, where Narvada Devi registered a victory. Congress rebel Alaknanda Handa, contesting as an Independent, defeated senior BJP leader and former district BJP president Ranvir Singh from the Khaliyar ward. In Mandi, MC elections were held in 14 of the 15 wards, as voters in ward no. 14 had boycotted the elections.
Voter Turnout
The four MCs recorded an overall voter turnout of 63.65% in the elections held on May 17, with Palampur registering the highest polling and Solan the lowest. There were a total of 131,369 eligible voters in the four MCs, out of which 83,342 voted.
Comparison with 2021 Elections
In the 2021 municipal corporation elections, when the BJP was in power, the Congress had won a majority in two corporations (Solan and Palampur), while the BJP had secured victory in the Mandi MC. In the Dharamshala MC, the BJP had won 8 of the 17 wards, Congress 5, and independents had secured 4 seats.
