People's Democracy

THE people of the city of Shimla, the capital of Himachal Pradesh, administered a crushing blow to the ruling BJP in the April 27 elections to the 24-member Shimla Municipal Corporation. Coming close on the heels of the BJP’s debacles in UP, Uttaranchal and Delhi and the BJP-Akali debacle in Punjab, the latest defeat reflected the thorough disenchantment of the people of the city, and the state in general, with the ruling BJP. Thoroughly rejecting its anti-people policies, its anti-people budget, and its efforts to communalise the society and nation, blind privatisation and failure to generate employment, the masses voted to defeat the BJP in Shimla convincingly. Significantly, the BJP was relegated to the third position in at least four wards.

The CPI(M) had taken initiative to forge a third alternative in the state, Him Loktantric Morcha, consisting of eight parties led by former HP minister Mohinder Singh and CPI(M) state secretariat member Rakesh Singha. The Morcha decided to contest the elections on a pro-people manifesto and expose the BJP government’s misdeeds and anti-people policies. The Morcha contested 21 wards and supported an independent in one ward. A CPI(M) candidate, Rajeev Thakur was elected councillor from Summer Hill ward as the Morcha candidate.

The BJP’s state government left no stone unturned to ensure the victory of the BJP candidates. Its ministers went from door to door seeking votes. Employees’ leaders were summoned to the chief minister’s residence to garner votes for the ruling combine. Common employees were intimidated with threats of transfer. Bogus voters were enrolled in large numbers in many wards across the city and bogus voting took place on a large scale. Some sops were also announced on election eve to sway the voters. The government even went to the extent of announcing electricity and water connections for those living in makeshift shelters, though that they would have to pay Rs 5 per unit of electricity and their connections would be valid for three months. But nothing worked and the people of the city voted to defeat the BJP.

Rajeev Thakur, CPI(M) candidate from the Summer Hill ward, won by a margin of 200 votes, polling 805 votes out of the total 1900 votes polled. The ruling BJP had enrolled about 250 bogus votes in this ward. The Morcha released the names of bogus voters along with documentary evidence that these were no residents of the ward. The Morcha secured 16 per cent of the votes polled and its candidates came second in four wards, relegating the BJP candidates to the third position. Overall, however, the Morcha made significant gains and succeeded in focussing attention on the BJP’s anti-people policies and communal politics.

The results have left the ruling BJP crestfallen. The Congress won in 16 wards, and the Morcha in one. The BJP could manage to win only 6 wards. The results are a strong rebuff from the people to the kind of politics and policies the BJP has come to symbolise.