SHIMLA: Former BJP MP from Kangra, Rajan Sushant on Sunday announced to float a new regional political party “Hamari Party, Himachal Party” and claimed that party will contest on all 68 seats of state in 2022 assembly election. After making the announcement he attacked the chief minister Jai Ram Thakur led government on the issues of employment, debt burden on the state and pension being given to government employees. He said that state government has failed to protect state’s resources.
While interacting with media persons in Shimla, Rajan Sushant said that “Hamari Party, Himachal Party” belongs to people of state and it will be the people of Himachal Pradesh who will decide its future course of action. He said that in next 6 months, party will establish its booth level units after which mass agitation would be launched against the failure of state government.
He alleged that state’s resources are being sold and financial position of state is also very bad as the government is running with the help of borrowings. He said that in Himachal Pradesh every child is born with debt burden of Rs 80,000.
He said that number of unemployed is continuously increasing in the state and at present there are 13 lakh unemployed youth in the state as state government has provided employment to them. He said that cases of providing jobs on compassionate grounds are pending while government is providing jobs through contractors on outsource basis.
He said that government employees are demanding pension under old scheme but so far government has failed to listen to their demands. He said that all the former MLAs and MPs should given up their pension in the support of government employees covered under new pension scheme.
With the announcement of new political outfit now 2022 assembly election would be interesting as Rajan Sushant was once considered as the firebrand BJP leader of state who had remained minister in Dhumal government.
This is not the first time when a leader from state had tried to form a third front against BJP and Congress. Before the emergency, Thakur Sen Negi from Kinnaur had floated Lok Raj Party in 1967 at that time Kangra was part of Punjab and in 1972, Lok Raj Party had contested on 16 seats and had won 2 seats with 5.02% vote share of total votes polled.
In 1997, former union minister Sukh Ram launched Himachal Vikas Congress after leaving Congress and In the 1998 assembly election, party contested on 62 assembly seats and won 5 assembly seats by securing 9.63% of total votes polled. As Congress and BJP both had won 31 seats each they needed the support of Himachal Vikas Congress and for the first time a coalition government of Himachal Vikas Congress-BJP led by Prem Kumar Dhumal was formed in the state.
But in the 2003 assembly election the party lost its magic as out of 49 assembly seats where the party contested, it could only win one seat of Mandi from where party supremo Sukh Ram himself had contested. In 41 assembly seats, party candidates forfeited their deposits. This also marked the end of Himachal Vikas Congress in the state as before the 2007 assembly election, Sukh Ram merged his party in Congress though many of its leaders joined BJP. In 2004, Sukh Ram finally merged his party with the Congress.
Another attempt to form a regional party was made before the 2012 assembly election when some BJP dissidents led by former Mandi MP and former BJP state president Maheshwar Singh floated the Himachal Lokhit Party. In the 2012 assembly elections, party contested on 36 seats out of total 68 assembly seats but could win only seat of Kullu from where Maheshwar Singh himself had contested, while in rest of 35 seats party candidates forfeited their deposits though party managed to 2.40% votes share of total votes polled. Seeing the party failing to make grounds, Maheshwar Singh merged the party with BJP in October 2016, right before the 2017 assembly election.