Himachal Congress drama continues over CM seat
10 Dec 2022 14:30:24
Shimla, Dec 10: Amid the political tensions in Himachal Pradesh, Congress leader Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu refuted the claims of him being the chief minister candidate.
While talking to reporters in Shimla, the Congress leader said “I am not a CM candidate. I am a disciplined soldier and worker of the Congress party and an MLA. Party high command’s decision will be final”. Congress MLA Harshvardhan Chauhan also said that the final decision will be taken by the party's high command.
“Whatever decision the Congress high command takes, we will accept it. We will put forward our suggestions, but the decision will be taken according to the opinion of the elected MLAs,” he said. Earlier today, Congress Himachal in-charge Rajeev Shukla had said that the party will be having a meeting with the MLAs. “All the MLAs are reaching here, and when they will reach here, we will have a meeting, where a resolution will be passed to authorize the party high command,” he had said. He further said that there is no dispute at the party.
“Voting only happens if there is a dispute, and there is no dispute in our party,” he added. Meanwhile, the supporters of Congress Himachal President Pratibha Singh gathered outside the Congress Shimla headquarters and demanded her appointment as the chief minister. Amid all the sloganeering, they said that the party has got the mandate only under her leadership, and it would be a huge mistake on the part of the party's high command if she is not given the charge. On Thursday, Congress came out victorious in the assembly elections, which were held in the hill state, by winning 40 seats, while the BJP could manage only 25 seats.
However, finalizing its chief ministerial candidate for Himachal Pradesh appears to be a sticky task for Congress with various aspirants in the fray including Pratibha Singh, widow of former Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh, former state party chief Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu and CLP leader Mukesh Agnihotri.