According to sources, Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, whom party leaders credited with winning the Himachal Pradesh Assembly elections, will make the final decision on who will be the state’s Chief Minister. This follows a day of high drama in the hill state, with rival factions vying for power.
On Friday evening, the state’s 40 Congress MLAs passed the party’s traditional one-line resolution authorizing the “high command” to make a decision. The decision is expected to be made by Sunday.
Priyanka Gandhi and new national president Mallikarjun Kharge led the party’s campaign in Himachal Pradesh, holding several rallies, and were also heavily involved in election strategy planning. Many leaders praised her for leading the party to victory and defeating the BJP’s election machinery.
This is Priyanka Gandhi’s first electoral victory as campaign leader. While she was canvassing in Uttar Pradesh earlier this year, the party lost the assembly elections.
Priyanka Gandhi brought up the issues of Agnipath, inflation, unemployment, and the old pension plan during her rallies in Sirmour, Kangra, Solan, and Una.
Late last evening, MLAs met with central overseers Rajeev Shukla, Bhupinder Hooda, and Bhupesh Baghel to coordinate. They spoke with each MLA to determine who has the most support.
The “high command” resolution, however, was only passed after a show of force by Pratibha Singh’s supporters, the state’s congresswoman and the stronghold of her family, ahead of the meeting in Shimla. Pratibha Singh, a three-term MP and the wife of the late leader Virbhadra Singh, an ex-royal, was hounded by party members who shouted slogans and even blocked Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel’s car, demanding that she “deserves the top post.”
Other candidates in the race include Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu and Mukesh Agnihotri, both of whom have support in areas outside of Shimla. Because the meeting was held in Shimla today, support for Pratibha Singh dominated the headlines.
