Vishal Rana, Hamirpur

The BJP has once again demonstrated its dominance in the Hamirpur Parliamentary constituency, which spans five districts and includes 17 assembly segments. Despite the presence of the Chief Minister, Deputy Chief Minister, and a Cabinet Minister from the Congress party, they failed to dismantle Anurag Thakur’s stronghold.

The surprising element of this election was that, apart from the Deputy Chief Minister, no other Congress leader could secure a lead for their candidate in their respective areas. In fact, Congress candidate Satpal Raizada even lost in his own segment.

In the Deputy Chief Minister’s home assembly segment, Haroli, Raizada managed a lead of 1,535 votes, with 31,876 votes to BJP’s 30,341. However, the other four assembly segments saw significant leads for BJP. In Chief Minister’s home assembly segment, Nadaun, BJP’s Anurag Thakur received 35,373 votes compared to Raizada’s 33,230, securing a lead of 2,143 votes. In Bhoranj, BJP garnered 35,830 votes to Congress’s 20,570, resulting in a massive lead of 15,260 votes.

Cabinet Minister Rajesh Dharmani’s assembly segment Ghumarwin also favored BJP, with Thakur leading by 13,753 votes. In Raizada’s own segment Una, he managed 31,936 votes against BJP’s 32,361, giving the BJP a lead of 425 votes.

The election results from all 17 segments underscore that breaking Anurag Thakur’s influence is not an easy feat. With a lead of 182,357 votes, the BJP has dispelled any doubts regarding their stronghold, even with significant figures from Congress contesting.

Focus on By-Elections Influences Outcome
One of the critical factors for Anurag Thakur’s substantial victory margin was the focus on the by-elections in four key seats within the Hamirpur parliamentary area. During the election campaign, the Chief Minister targeted Congress rebels who had joined BJP, emphasizing the importance of winning these by-election seats to maintain the government’s prestige. This strategic focus on assembly by-elections over the parliamentary seat may have contributed to the Congress candidate’s poor performance.