Shimla, June 28: Former Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh, Jairam Thakur, accused the Congress-led state government on Saturday of undermining democracy by misusing administrative machinery to manipulate the results of Panchayati Raj and urban local body elections.
He alleged that after failing to halt the elections, the state government is deliberately delaying the elections for chairpersons and vice-chairpersons to promote horse-trading and overturn the public mandate.
Thakur, the Leader of the Opposition, stated that the government initially attempted to postpone the elections by invoking the Disaster Act, altering election rules, and creating procedural hurdles. After intervention from the High Court and subsequently the Supreme Court, elections had to be conducted within the timeline set by the court.
Despite this, he claimed that the state government is refusing to complete the democratic process by not releasing the election schedule for key leadership positions in local bodies.
Presenting evidence of public sentiment, Thakur informed the media that candidates supported by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won approximately 70 percent of the positions for Panchayat heads and deputy heads, reflecting widespread public dissatisfaction with the Congress government.
He also noted that the BJP achieved significant victories in urban local body elections, including a clear majority in the Dharamshala Municipal Corporation, where the party won 11 out of 17 seats.
Thakur asserted that only three out of 12 district councils have completed elections for chairpersons and vice-chairpersons, and in these instances, Congress reportedly did not field any candidates.
He mentioned that only 47 out of 92 Block Development Committees (BDCs) have held elections for their leadership positions, with BJP-supported candidates winning 31 seats compared to Congress’s 16.
Thakur accused the state government of deliberately postponing election dates wherever the BJP holds a majority. He also alleged that the government is using vigilance inquiries, false cases, transfers of relatives, and administrative pressure to intimidate elected representatives supported by the BJP, thereby influencing the democratic process.
He referred to alleged irregularities in the election process within the Sujanpur Municipal Council, claiming that established voting rules were ignored.
Thakur announced that the BJP is compiling a list of officials who, according to the party, are working under political pressure by delaying elections or targeting BJP-supported representatives through administrative actions.
He warned that such actions would be legally challenged, asserting that the state government has crossed all limits of democratic propriety by refusing to accept the public mandate.
Thakur concluded that the results of the Panchayat and urban local body elections clearly indicate a significant decline in public trust in the state government led by Chief Minister Sukhu.
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