BJP’s Prem Kumar Dhumal, two-time former chief minister of Himachal Pradesh, in Sujanpur.
Sujanpur (Hamirpur, HP):
Former Himachal Pradesh chief minister Prem Kumar Dhumal, 78, said today he doesn’t feel left out by not getting a BJP ticket this time – “I chose this myself,” he claimed – but he did. see why some party leaders have abandoned rebel candidates for November 12 congressional polls.
“There’s really damage when there are rebels. Even if one vote is taken away, that’s damage. And when the party’s employees break away, they take away many votes,” he told NDTV as he said. was asked about 21 of the state’s 68 seats that see BJP leaders – including some recent arrivals from other parties – running as Independents.
Dhumal insists there are rebels on both sides.
However, the Congressional insurgency count was in single digits.
“Of course, we (BJP) have more rebels because the party that is more likely to form a government always has more people demanding tickets.
“I appealed to all the rebels. I told them there is more grace to stay with the party. See, a hair is pulled out, a tooth falls out and a person is rejected by society. never got their rightful place,” he added.
The rebels, he said, were “driven by emotion”. “Maybe the promises made to some of them were not kept. Every rebel has a reason,” he said, telling NDTV while campaigning for the party in Sujanpur in Hamirpur district, where he failed. last time despite being the supposed head of the BJP.
He declined a direct answer about Jai Ram Thakur still being considered an “accidental prime minister”.
“I am a loyal worker of the party”, he stressed, “I have chosen to pave the way for the younger generation this time. I am glad that the party has chosen a former army captain (Ranjit Singh) as its candidate. member from Sujanpur. I’m trying to secure his victory.”
There were reports of Mr Dhumal appearing upset after his son Anurag Thakur, a Union Minister who is an MP from Hamirpur, was seen crying last month at a poll rally talking about “the tireless efforts even at this age” of the father. He later said he didn’t cry over any ticket rejections because “my dad chose to retire anyway”. Mr Dhumal wrote a letter to this effect shortly before the candidates were named – a move many see as a way of saving face.
Regarding his future, the former professor today gave a philosophical answer: “There are many positions in the party and government, including the Minister. And there is always a day when it is prefixed with ” ‘former’ But in our party, karyakarta, worker, never ‘former’. I will be karyakarta until I die. And I will support whoever gets the party tickets. “
Predicting the face of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP is confident that it will break the status of the state “rivaaj” or the tendency to change government every election. Congress, facing a leadership controversy since the death of Virbhadra Singh last year, sees the BJP uprising as the differentiating factor it needs.
Among the key exploratory issues is the reinstatement of the old Retirement Scheme promised by Congress.
Mr. Dhumal told that, “Congress took power in the state and Center when the old plan was scrapped in Himachal in 2014. Whenever the OPS brings it back, only the BJP will do it.”
When asked what he believes should be done because Himachal has a high percentage of people serving the government, he said, “Personally, I feel that people who have served the state for many years should receive a salary. If the minimum pension is set at Rs 9 -10,000, most of the problem will be solved.”
In Agnipath’s plan to sign a four-year contract in the armed forces – Himachal has a long tradition of serving in the military – he said, “It’s new, so young people can’t yet understand the benefits of it. it. In time, they will.”
Voting is this Saturday; Results are expected on December 8.
