Shimla: The Congress on Friday announced the names of candidates for by-elections to three seats left vacant after the disqualification of six party rebels from the Himachal Pradesh Assembly this February.
The list of candidates includes two turncoat leaders - Captain Ranjit Singh from Sujanpu and Rakesh Kalia from Gagret - both of whom had recently left the BJP after the party did not nominate them as candidates for the bypoll.
The BJP instead chose as its candidates those Congress rebels who had voted in its favor in the Rajya Sabha elections held on February 27.
Congress leader Vivek Sharma has been declared the party's candidate from Kutlahar assembly constituency.
Six Congress MLAs, Rajinder Rana (Sujanpur), Sudhir Sharma (Dharamshala) Ravi Thakur (Lahaul and Spiti), Inder Dutt Lakhanpal (Barsar), Chetanya Sharma (Gagret) and Davinder Kumar Bhutto (Kutlehar) for violating the party whip. Has been convicted.Was declared ineligible. Be present in the Assembly during the cut motion and budget on 29th February and vote in favor of the government.
Captain Ranjit Singh, who had contested the 2022 assembly elections as a BJP candidate against Congress rebel Rajinder Rana and lost by 399 votes, quit the party this Wednesday. Now old rivals are pitted against each other again, even if they are from opposite parties.
Three-time Congress MLA from Gagret Rakesh Kalia had joined the BJP ahead of the 2022 assembly elections after not getting a ticket, but recently returned to the Congress.He will face Chetanya Sharma who is now in BJP.
Vivek Sharma, son of former Himachal deputy speaker and senior Congress leader Ram Nath Sharma, will be up against BJP candidate Davinde Kumar Bhutto from Kutlehar. The party has not yet announced its candidates from Barsar, Dharamshala and Lahau and Spiti assembly seats. Elections for four Lok Sabha seats and SI Assembly by-elections will be held on June 1.
The list of candidates includes two turncoat leaders - Captain Ranjit Singh from Sujanpu and Rakesh Kalia from Gagret - both of whom had recently left the BJP after the party did not nominate them as candidates for the bypoll.
The BJP instead chose as its candidates those Congress rebels who had voted in its favor in the Rajya Sabha elections held on February 27.
Congress leader Vivek Sharma has been declared the party's candidate from Kutlahar assembly constituency.
Six Congress MLAs, Rajinder Rana (Sujanpur), Sudhir Sharma (Dharamshala) Ravi Thakur (Lahaul and Spiti), Inder Dutt Lakhanpal (Barsar), Chetanya Sharma (Gagret) and Davinder Kumar Bhutto (Kutlehar) for violating the party whip. Has been convicted.Was declared ineligible. Be present in the Assembly during the cut motion and budget on 29th February and vote in favor of the government.
Captain Ranjit Singh, who had contested the 2022 assembly elections as a BJP candidate against Congress rebel Rajinder Rana and lost by 399 votes, quit the party this Wednesday. Now old rivals are pitted against each other again, even if they are from opposite parties.
Three-time Congress MLA from Gagret Rakesh Kalia had joined the BJP ahead of the 2022 assembly elections after not getting a ticket, but recently returned to the Congress.He will face Chetanya Sharma who is now in BJP.
Vivek Sharma, son of former Himachal deputy speaker and senior Congress leader Ram Nath Sharma, will be up against BJP candidate Davinde Kumar Bhutto from Kutlehar. The party has not yet announced its candidates from Barsar, Dharamshala and Lahau and Spiti assembly seats. Elections for four Lok Sabha seats and SI Assembly by-elections will be held on June 1.
