Two days after winning a decisive mandate in the assembly elections of Himachal Pradesh, the Congress party on December 10 announced Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu as its choice for the chief ministerial post.
Sukhu, 58, will succeed the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)'s Jai Ram Thakur, who submitted his resignation on December 8 after the saffron camp was reduced to 25 seats, and the Congress ended up clinching 40 seats -- six above the halfway mark of 34.
The Nadaun MLA, who is considered close to Rahul Gandhi and was the Congress campaign committee head, was unanimously elected leader of the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) in the meeting held earlier in the day. Those who were ousted by Sukhu in the CM race include Pratibha Singh, the wife of late Congress veteran and six-time ex-CM Virbhadra Singh.
Sukhu, who would be the seventh chief minister of Himachal Pradesh since the state's inception, will be administered the oath of office on December 11.
Key things to know about Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu
Sukhu is a four-time MLA and is considered to be a product of student politics. His elevation as the chief minister marks a generational shift in the party's state leadership, which was dominated by Congress veteran Virbhadra Singh for around five decades till his demise last year.
Son of a road transport corporation driver, Sukhu, had a modest beginning and used to run a milk counter at Chhota Shimla in his early days.
Rising through the ranks, Sukhu emerged as the party's state unit chief in 2013 and held the post till 2019.
He will be the first Congress leader from Lower Himachal -- comprising areas merged in Himachal in 1966 such as Nalagarh, Una, Hamirpur, Kangra and lower hills of Kullu -- to occupy the chief ministerial post. He will be the second chief minister from Hamirpur district, after BJP's Prem Kumar Dhumal.
That he enjoys the confidence of the party high command was clear when he was appointed chairman of the Congress election campaign committee and a large number of his supporters got party tickets, party insiders told news agency PTI.
During his tenure as the state Congress chief, he strengthened the organisation and his rapport with workers and legislators made him a strong contender for the chief minister's post, they added.
In terms of education, Sukhu pursued his MA and LLB from Himachal Pradesh University.
Rising from the grassroots, he was elected twice as a councillor of Shimla Municipal Corporation.
He won the assembly election for the first time in 2003 from Nadaun, retained the seat in 2007 but was defeated in 2012 and won again in 2017 and 2022.
With PTI inputs
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