Third defeat in row may make it tough for BJP in 2024 elections

KS Tomar

The unprecedented rout of the BJP in the recent Shimla MC elections may further demoralise party leaders and workers who are yet to recover from the successive shocking defeats in November 2022 Assembly elections and four bypolls earlier.

The BJP has suffered triple whammy, including current defeat in the Shimla MC poll, which will have direct bearing on the ensuing Lok Sabha elections in 2024.

Experts say that the Shimla MC poll was a ‘do and die’ battle for ex-CM Jai Ram Thakur and former state party chief Suresh Kashyap as their prestige was at stake, but they failed to ensure victory for their party. This may make it difficult for the BJP to retain all four Lok Sabha seats the party won in 2019.

In its desperate bid to win the Shimla MC poll, the BJP did not primarily emphasise on the performance of its outgoing Mayor and its previous government but instead, highlighted PM Narendra Modi’s achievements and party’s national president JP Nadda in the posters, thereby relegating state leaders to the background.

Congress leaders like CM Sukhvinder Sukhu, state president Pratibha Singh, Deputy CM Mukesh Agnihotri and local MLA Harish Janartha, besides ministers like Harshwardhan Chauhan, Rohit Thakur, Anirudh Singh, Vikramaditya Singh, several MLAs, etc, were at the forefront and exhibited management skill to outsmart every political move of the BJP.

Contrary to it, BJP’s newly appointed president Dr Rajiv Bindal gave a significant statement that the MC polls were being fought under the joint leadership of ex-CM Thakur and Suresh Kashyap, who was suddenly changed by the high command ahead of the elections, which sent a wrong signal. Experts say Dr Bindal might have sensed the writing on the wall and, hence, successfully wriggled out of the responsibility of imminent defeat in the MC polls.

Experts say that BJP’s instinct to win every election has been brought to a grinding halt thrice and MC poll results witnessed the repeat of the factors responsible for the defeat of the party in the Assembly poll last year. Second, the BJP had controlled the Shimla MC for five years. Hence, anti-incumbency came into play. Third, locals were dissatisfied with the lack of parking facilities, cleanliness, traffic congestion, irregular supply of water and power.

Fourth, though a ‘Double-engine sarkar’, it failed to come up to the expectations of the residents. Fifth, new Congress government delivered on its topmost guarantees like OPS restoration, Rs 1,500 per month for women in a phased manner, launch of low 2 per cent loan to farmers, etc.

Sixth, employees’ anger persisted as the previous BJP government had rejected their OPS demand. Similarly, apple growers were upset with the BJP as their demands were ignored during its five-year regime. Finally, the Sukhu government is barely five-month-old hence the public hasn’t developed apathy towards the ruling party so far.

In the final assessment, it is a big setback to the BJP, which had the backing of vast resources, committed party cadres and the RSS, except the support of electorate. The Shimla MC polls victory may give further fillip to the Congress and it can make concerted efforts to improve its performance in HP in 2024.

Relegated to background

The BJP didn’t primarily emphasise on the performance of its outgoing Mayor and its previous govt but, highlighted Modi’s achievements and party’s national president JP Nadda in the posters, thereby relegating state leaders to the background. Congress leaders were, however, at the forefront and exhibited management skill to outsmart every political move of the BJP.

(Writer is political analyst in Shimla)

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