Himachal Pradesh puts up with poll rhetoric

A week before polling in Himachal Pradesh on Thursday, the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Congress sharpened their barbs on each other. While Prime Minister Narendra Modi described the Congress as a ‘laughing club’, the Congress retaliated by ridiculing him as ‘Jumla Babu’, whose forte lay in ‘Bhashan’ (oratory or public speaking) and not ‘Shasan’ (administration) .

While Modi called upon the Congress to reflect why a generally forgiving country is not being kind to the party, Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala asserted that the PM would be remembered for unleashing unemployment, corruption and ‘Modi made disasters’ of demonetisation and GST.

The PM would be remembered as Muhammad bin Tughluq, he added. The economy, he said, is in the ICU and the common man is crushed. Surjewala reminded the Prime Minister of the promises he had made to people in Himachal Pradesh and sought his response on unfulfilled promises.

Refuting Modi’s charges, the Congress said that country should be run with the Janmat (consensus) not Jumla (rhetoric).

Election for 68 assembly seats will be held November 9 in Himachal Pradesh while counting of votes will take place on December 18.

In the 2012 Assembly elections, Congress under the leadership of Virbhadra Singh had won 36 seats and the BJP 26 seats in the House. Virbhadra Singh had set a record by becoming chief minister for sixth time of the Himalayan state.

Both the national parties seem to have a dearth of younger leaders with mass appeal across the state, forcing them to bank on old, tested warhorses like Virbhadra Singh (83) and Prem Kumar Dhumal (73), both having been chief ministers of the state on several occasions.