Dehra (Himachal Pradesh): In a significant political development in Himachal Pradesh, Wife of Chief Minister Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu and Congress candidate Kamlesh Thakur secured a resounding victory in the by-election for the Dehra assembly seat, defeating BJP's Hoshyar Singh by a margin of 9,399 votes. The by-elections, held on July 10 garnered widespread attention as Thakur contested for the first time.
The electoral contest unfolded with Thakur initially trailing behind Singh in the early rounds of counting. However, as the rounds progressed, Thakur steadily expanded her lead, ultimately clinching victory after a closely watched tally that extended ten rounds.
Thakur's triumph marks a historic win for the Congress party in Dehra, a seat previously held by BJP for two terms, and twice by independent MLA Hoshyar Singh. In the 2017 elections, Congress had failed to secure even enough votes to retain their deposit.
Born on April 2, 1970, in Nalasuha village in district Kangra, Kamlesh Thakur pursued her education in Political Science and PGDCA from Government College Chandigarh. Married to Chief Minister Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu since 1989, Thakur has been actively involved with the Congress party for over two decades before contesting her first election in this by-poll.
The total voter turnout saw strong participation with Thakur garnering 32,737 votes against Hoshyar Singh's 23,338 votes. Notably, 150 voters opted for the NOTA (None of the Above) option.
Apart from the main contenders, other candidates contesting for the seat lost their deposits, underlining the clear mandate in favor of Thakur and the Congress party in this electoral contest. Kamlesh Thakur's candidacy in Dehra was notable as she replaced veteran leader Rajesh Sharma, who contested unsuccessfully in 2022.
Voter turnout was robust across constituencies, with Nalagarh recording the highest 79.04 per cent, followed by Hamirpur at 67.72 per cent and Dehra at 65,42 per cent. These by-elections were necessitated after three Independent legislators, who supported BJP in the Rajya Sabha polls earlier, resigned from their seats in March and subsequently joined the BJP. This triggered the need for by-elections as their resignations were accepted by the Assembly speaker in June.
