Voting for the seventh and last of Lok Sabha elections will take place on June 1 across 57 constituencies. All four Lok Sabha seats of Himachal Pradesh - Shimla, Mandi, Kangra and Hamirpur - will go to polls in the final phase of the ongoing elections.
In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) emerged victorious in all four seats and is eyeing yet another clean sweep. The Congress, which won the 2022 Himachal Pradesh assembly elections by securing 40 of 69 seats, is confident of reversing its electoral fortunes in the June 1 election.
Various prominent faces, including Union minister Anurag Thakur, senior Congress leader Anand Sharma and actor Kangana Ranaut, contesting from Himachal's four parliamentary seats is making the election in the hill state a closely watched one.
The following are the key seats and candidates:
Mandi: The BJP has fielded Kangana Ranaut from Mandi against Congress' Vikramaditya Singh, heir of the Rampur royal family and son of former chief minister of Himachal Pradesh late Virbhadra Singh. The Lok Sabha seat is currently represented Vikramaditya's mother Pratibha Singh who had emerged victorious in 2004 and 2013 as well. The Mandi Lok Sabha constituency has been a Congress stronghold with Virbhadra Singh having won from the seat thrice - 1971, 1980 and 2009. While Vikramaditya (Shimla rural MLA) benefits from his familial connections and political acumen, Kangana is completely banking on Modi magic.
Hamirpur: Currently represented by Union minister Anurag Thakur, Hamirpur Lok Sabha constituency has been a BJP stronghold. The Congress, which has fielded Satpal Raizada for the June 1 election, last tasted success from the seat in 1996. Anurag Thakur, who was elected for the first time in 2008 bypoll following his father Prem Kumar Dhumal's resignation after taking over as chief minister of Himachal Pradesh, won three more elections in a row in 2009, 2014 and 2019. The sports minister is seeking the fifth consecutive win from Hamirpur which comprises 17 assembly segments.
Kangra: Established in 1952, Kangra Lok Sabha constituency comprises 17 assembly segments including Dalhousie, Chamba, Dharamshala and Palampur among others. The seat is currently represented by BJP's Kishan Kapoor who defeated Congress leader Pawan Kajal in 2019 by a margin of over 4.77 lakh votes. The saffron party dropped Kapoor and nominated Rajeev Bharadwaj to take on Congress veteran and former Union minister Anand Sharma in the June 1 election. While the grand old party was the dominant party in the initial years, it failed to secure the Kangra seat in the last three elections.
Shimla: Currently represented by Suresh Kumar Kashyap, president of the BJP Himachal Pradesh unit, Shimla Lok Sabha constituency has been reserved to candidates belonging to the Scheduled Castes (SC). The BJP first secured Shimla parliamentary seat, which was a Congress stronghold, in 2009. Since then, it has maintained its winning streak. In 2019, Suresh Kashyap emerged victorious by defeating Congress' Dhani Ram Shandil by a margin of over 3.27 lakh votes. Vinod Sultanpuri of the Congress is pitted against BJP candidate Suresh Kashyap. Former chief minister of Himachal Pradesh, late Virbhadra Singh represented the Shimla Lok Sabha constituency twice - 1962 and 1967.
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