Ravinder Ravi defiant, BJP in damage control mode

Pratibha Chauhan

Shimla, July 25

The BJP is in the damage control mode to prevent further defections. Former minister Ravinder Ravi has announced that he will contest the forthcoming Assembly elections from Sulah or Dehra seats in Kangra even if the party denies him the ticket.

Upset at Dehra MLA’s induction into BJP

• There is speculation that Ravinder Ravi, five-time MLA, may join Congress
• Ravi, a diehard Dhumal loyalist, is unhappy over Hoshiar Singh’s induction into the BJP
• He lost the 2017 election to Hoshiar Singh from Dehra

The BJP seems to have set the cat among the pigeons by inducting Independent MLA from Dehra, Hoshiar Singh, into the party. Hoshiar Singh’s induction has created uneasiness in the party in Dehra block, fuelling speculation that Ravi, a five-time MLA, may even join the Congress.

Forest Minister Rakesh Pathania held a meeting of Dehra block leaders yesterday to placate Ravi and persuade him to not take any decision in a haste. “The main objective of the meeting was to mollify Ravi and take feedback from party leaders and workers about a possible arrangement so that there is no rebellion over ticket allocation,” said a senior leader.

Interestingly, besides Hoshiar Singh, Ravi as well as Jwalamukhi MLA Ramesh Dhawala attended the meeting. A large number of Dehra leaders objected to Hoshiar Singh’s presence at the meeting. Ravi’s joining the Congress could queer the pitch for the BJP not just in Dehra but also in Sulah, Jwalamukhi and Palampur constituencies.

The BJP is looking for an amicable solution to avert trouble in Dehra block, created due to Hoshiar Singh’s induction. The party is considering all options, including fielding Ravi from Jwalamukhi and Dhawala from Dehra. However, Ravi is keen to contest the election from Sulah, as a major part of his constituency of Thural has been merged into it. Vidhan Sabha Speaker Vipin Parmar represents the Sulah constituency, so adjusting Ravi there can again cause trouble.

Ravi, a diehard Dhumal loyalist, has clearly indicated that he is in no mood to relent. There is speculation that he may join the Congress. Former BJP president Khimi Ram from Banjar in Kullu district and Indu Verma, a former Zila Parsihad member and wife of three-time BJP MLA Rakesh Verma from Theog in Shimla, have already joined the Congress.

Ravi had won Assembly elections consecutively in 1993, 1998, 2003, 2007 and 2012. However, he lost the 2017 election to Hoshiar Singh from the Dehra seat where he was shifted after his Assembly segment of Thural was merged into Sulah, Jwalamukhi and Dehra seats in the delimitation exercise in 2012. The number of Assembly segments in Kangra district reduced from 16 to 15.

Ravi has been unhappy over Hoshiar Singh’s proximity to Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur and his induction into the party. However, the situation in Jogindernagar in Mandi is not so volatile after Independent MLA Prakash Rana joined the BJP