BJP leaders join Congress as CM Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu campaigns in Dehra

Lalit Mohan

Dharamsala, June 30

With Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu camping in Dehra Assembly constituency to campaign for his wife Kamlesh Thakur, many BJP leaders from the area are joining the Congress. Kamlesh Thakur is Congress candidate for Dehra byelections.

Some of the BJP leaders, who have joined the Congress since campaign for the Dehra byelections started are Mahinder Chauhan, Dehra organisational district vice-president, Parveen Kumar Mandal, secretary of Dehra, Bhagi Ram, president of SC morcha of Dehra BJP, Raghubir Singh, convenor of OBC morcha, Manohar Lal and Shavinder Singh. Besides, many ground level workers were joining Congress during the programmes being organised by the CM and his wife.

The Congress has been maintaining that the BJP leaders are joining Congress as they are unhappy with the party decision to make independent MLA Hoshiyar Singh a BJP candidate from Dehra. The BJP, however, is alleging that the Chief Minister is using government machinery to force and intimidate BJP workers to join Congress. Sanjay Sharma, state spokesperson of the BJP, alleged that government machinery, including police official, bureaucrcy and other government officials, were being used to make BJP workers join Congress in CM’s programme. It was blatant misuse of power by the Chief Minister, he said.

Most leaders in Dehra district BJP organisation, who owed loyalty to BJP MP from Hamirpur and former union minister Anurag Thakur, had been at loggerheads with Hoshiyar Singh while he was an independent MLA. There were instances where Hoshiyar Singh threatened the BJP leaders who were opposing him. BJP leadership had tried to break ice between Hoshiyar Singh and its local cadres. Sources said that Hoshiyar Singh had personally approached many local BJP leaders who had differences with him. However, many of them failed to reconcile to the fact that Hoshiyar Singh, whom they had been fighting politically, would lead them as a BJP leader.

With the Chief Minister offering hope to Dehra voters that he would resolve the longstanding demands of the area like the issues of Pong Dam oustees, the Congress campaign is gathering steam. For Hoshiyar Singh, the going is getting to be tough as he faces the challenge of retaining his base in Dehra and take along the disgruntled BJP workers.