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Politics of Himachal Pradesh

The key political players in Himachal Pradesh state in north-west India are the Indian National Congress and Bharatiya Janata Party.

Politics of Himachal Pradesh
Legislative branch
Name Vidhan Sabha
TypeUnicameral
Meeting place Vidhan Bhavan
Lower house
Name Vidhan Sabha
Presiding officerKuldeep Singh Pathania, Speaker of the Vidhan Sabha
Executive branch
Head of state
TitleGovernor
CurrentlyRajendra Arlekar
AppointerPresident
Head of government
TitleChief Minister
CurrentlySukhvinder Singh Sukhu
AppointerGovernor
Cabinet
NameHimachal Pradesh Council of Ministers
Current cabinetSukhu ministry
LeaderChief Minister
AppointerGovernor
Ministries8
Judicial branch
CourtsHigh Court
Chief judgeAmjad Ahtesham Sayed

The politics of Himachal Pradesh are more associated with the regional divides of the state.[1]

Based on electoral divide, the state can be divided as - Upper Himanchal consisting the districts of Shimla, Sirmaur and parts of Mandi, Kullu, Lahaul and Spiti, Solan, Kinnaur and Chamba; and Lower Himachal consisting the districts of Kangra, Hamirpur, Bilaspur, Una and the lower region of Mandi district.[1]The State was reorganised on 1966 through the Punjab Reorganisation Act by adding some parts of Punjab to the state of Himanchal Pradesh; and the parts of old Himachal and the newly merged areas too differ in their voting pattern.[1]

National politics

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There are four Lok Sabha (lower house of the Indian Parliament) constituencies in Himachal Pradesh.

Election Lok Sabha Party-wise details Constituencies
Party Seats Kangra Mandi Hamirpur Shimla Mahasu Chamba
1951 1st Lok Sabha INC 4 INC INC INC INC Not There Not There
1957 2nd Lok Sabha INC 4 INC INC INC INC Not There Not There
1962 3rd Lok Sabha INC 4 INC INC INC INC Not There Not There
1967 4th Lok Sabha INC 6 INC INC INC INC INC INC
1971 5th Lok Sabha INC 4 INC INC INC INC Not There Not There
1977 6th Lok Sabha JP 4 JP JP JP JP Not There Not There
1980 7th Lok Sabha INC 4 INC INC INC INC Not There Not There
1984 8th Lok Sabha INC 4 INC INC INC INC Not There Not There
1989 9th Lok Sabha BJP 4 BJP BJP BJP INC Not There Not There
1991 10th Lok Sabha BJP/INC 4 BJP INC BJP INC Not There Not There
1996 11th Lok Sabha INC 4 INC INC INC INC Not There Not There
1998 12th Lok Sabha BJP 4 BJP BJP BJP INC Not There Not There
1999 13th Lok Sabha BJP 4 BJP BJP BJP HVC Not There Not There
2004 14th Lok Sabha INC 4 INC INC BJP INC Not There Not There
2009 15th Lok Sabha BJP 4 BJP INC BJP BJP Not There Not There
2014 16th Lok Sabha BJP 4 BJP BJP BJP BJP Not There Not There
2019 17th Lok Sabha BJP 4 BJP BJP BJP BJP Not There Not There
2024 18th Lok Sabha BJP 4 BJP BJP BJP BJP Not There Not There

State politics

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The Himachal Pradesh's Legislative Assembly currently has 68 seats who are directly elected from single-seat constituencies.[2] An election did not take place for 15 years after 1952 due to the enactment of the States Reorganisation Act in 1956 which designated Himachal Pradesh as a Union Territory instead of a Part-C state, falling under the direct control of the President of India.[3] Accordingly, the Legislative Assembly was dissolved. This was later changed in 1963 when the Government of Union Territories Act was passed, providing Himachal with a Legislative Assembly and Chief Minister again.[4] Election were first held again in 1967, after the Punjab Reorganisation Act (1966) was passed, transferring some territory to Himachal Pradesh.[5] Eventually, Himachal Pradesh became a fully fledged state (the 18th of the Union) with the passing of The State of Himachal Pradesh Act in 1970.[6]

The Indian National Congress dominated the state assembly throughout the 1960s and early 1970s, much like most of the nation. The state's first Chief Minister was Yashwant Singh Parmar, who led the region's early development post-Independence. Parmar is still widely celebrated to this day and is even called "The Founder of Himachal Pradesh".[7] After differences with party leaders, Parmar eventually resigned in 1977 at the age of 71. Thakur Ram Lal served as the 2nd Chief Minister until the elections that year. However, in 1977, with Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's Emergency extremely unpopular throughout the nation, Congress were dealt heavy electoral blows. The state party lost in a landslide to the opposition Janata Party, with Shanta Kumar becoming the state's 3rd Chief Minister. His ministry only lasted for 3 years though, and after multiple party defections,[8] Congress regained power in February 1980 with Ram Lal once again assuming the office of Chief Minister. This administration didn't last either, and after scandals and political turmoil, Ram Lal was forced to resign in 1983, a year after he'd narrowly won re-election.[9] He was replaced by fellow Congress leader Virbhadra Singh. Ever since 1985, no incumbent party has managed to retain control of the Legislative Assembly, and power has flipped between the BJP and INC every few years.

1952 Legislative Assembly election

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Main article: 1952 Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly election
Election Vidhan Sabha Party-wise details Chief Minister Party
Party Seats
1952 1st Vidhan Sabha Indian National Congress 24  Yashwant Singh Parmar INC
Kisan Mazdoor Praja Party 3
Independent 8
Scheduled Caste Federation 1
Total 36

1967 Legislative Assembly election

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Main article: 1967 Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly election
Election Vidhan Sabha Party-wise details Chief Minister Party
Party Seats
1967 2nd Vidhan Sabha Indian National Congress 34  Yashwant Singh Parmar INC
Independent 16
Bharatiya Jana Sangh 7
Communist Party of India 2
Swatantra Party 1
Total 60

1972 Legislative Assembly election

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Main article: 1972 Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly election
Election Vidhan Sabha Party-wise details Chief Minister Party
Party Seats
1972 3rd Vidhan Sabha Indian National Congress 53  Yashwant Singh Parmar INC
Independent 7
Bharatiya Jana Sangh 5
Lok Raj Party Himachal Pradesh 2
Communist Party of India (Marxist) 1
Total 68

1977 Legislative Assembly election

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Main article: 1977 Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly election
Election Vidhan Sabha Party-wise details Chief Minister Party
Party Seats
1977 4th Vidhan Sabha Janta Party 53  Shanta Kumar JP
Indian National Congress 9
Independent 6
Total 68

1982 Legislative Assembly election

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Main article: 1982 Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly election
Election Vidhan Sabha Party-wise details Chief Minister Party
Party Seats
1982 5th Vidhan Sabha Indian National Congress 31  Thakur Ram Lal INC
Bharatiya Janta Party 29
Independent 6
Janata Party 2
Total 68

1985 Legislative Assembly election

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Main article: 1985 Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly election
Election Vidhan Sabha Party-wise details Chief Minister Party
Party Seats
1985 6th Vidhan Sabha Indian National Congress 58  Virbhadra Singh INC
Bharatiya Janta Party 7
Independent 2
Lok Dal 1
Total 68

1990 Legislative Assembly election

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Main article: 1990 Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly election
Election Vidhan Sabha Party-wise details Chief Minister Party
Party Seats
1990 7th Vidhan Sabha Bharatiya Janta Party 46  Shanta Kumar BJP
Janata Dal 11
Indian National Congress 9
Independent 1
CPI 1
Total 68

1993 Legislative Assembly election

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Main article: 1993 Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly election
Election Vidhan Sabha Party-wise details Chief Minister Party
Party Seats
1993 8th Vidhan Sabha Indian National Congress 52  Virbhadra Singh INC
Bharatiya Janta Party 8
Independent 7
Communist Party of India (Marxist) 1
Total 68

1998 Legislative Assembly election

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Main article: 1998 Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly election

Keys:   BJP (-)   INC (-)   BSP (-)   UKD/UKD(P) (-)   NCP (-)   Independent (-)   CPIM (-)

Election Vidhan Sabha Party-wise details Chief Minister Party
Party Seats
1998 9th Vidhan Sabha Bharatiya Janta Party 31  Prem Kumar Dhumal BJP
Indian National Congress 31
Himachal Vikas Congress 5
Independent 1
Total 68

2003 Legislative Assembly election

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Main article: 2003 Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly election

Keys:   BJP (-)   INC (-)   BSP (-)   UKD/UKD(P) (-)   NCP (-)   Independent (-)   CPIM (-)

Election Vidhan Sabha Party-wise details Chief Minister Party
Party Seats
2003 10th Vidhan Sabha Indian National Congress 43  Virbhadra Singh INC
Bharatiya Janta Party 16
Independent 6
Himachal Vikas Congress 1
Lok Janshakti Party 1
Loktantrik Morcha Himachal Pradesh 1
Total 68

2007 Legislative Assembly election

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Main article: 2007 Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly election

The 2007 Himachal Pradesh legislative assembly election were held in Himachal Pradesh in 2007.

Keys:   BJP (-)   INC (-)   BSP (-)   Independent (-)

Election Vidhan Sabha Party-wise details Chief Minister Party
Party Seats
2007 11th Vidhan Sabha Bharatiya Janta Party 41  Prem Kumar Dhumal BJP
Indian National Congress 23
Independent 3
Bahujan Samaj Party 1
Total 68

2012 Legislative Assembly election

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Main article: 2012 Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly election

Keys:   BJP (-)   INC (-)   BSP (-)   UKD/UKD(P) (-)   NCP (-)   Independent (-)   CPIM (-)

Election Vidhan Sabha Party-wise details Chief Minister Party
Party Seats
2012 12th Vidhan Sabha Indian National Congress 36  Virbhadra Singh
 INC
Bharatiya Janta Party 26
Independent 5
Himachal Lokhit Party 1
Total 68

2017 Legislative Assembly election

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Main article: 2017 Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly election

BJP won 44 out of 68 seats to form the government, ousting Congress party from power. Indian National Congress won 21 seats. Jai Ram Thakur was appointed as Chief Minister after the elections.

Keys:   BJP (-)   INC (-)   BSP (-)   UKD/UKD(P) (-)   NCP (-)   Independent (-)   CPIM (-)

Election Vidhan Sabha Party-wise details Chief Minister Party
Party Seats
2017 13th Vidhan Sabha Bharatiya Janta Party 44  Jai Ram Thakur
 BJP
Indian National Congress 21
Independent 2
Communist Party of India (Marxist) 1
Total 68

2022 Legislative Assembly election

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Main article: 2022 Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly election

Keys:   INC (-)   BJP (-)   Independent (-)

Election Vidhan Sabha Party-wise details Chief Minister Party
Party Seats
2022 14th Vidhan Sabha Indian National Congress 40  Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu
 INC
Bharatiya Janta Party 28
Total 68

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c "Road to Shimla goes through Kangra': Regional divide prevails over caste in HP". Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  2. ^ "Himachal Pradesh Elections and Results- News and Updates on Chief Ministers, Cabinet and Governors". www.elections.in. Retrieved 13 November 2015.
  3. ^ "The Constitution (Seventh Amendment) Act, 1956| National Portal of India". www.india.gov.in. Retrieved 14 April 2023.
  4. ^ "THE GOVERNMENT OF UNION TERRITORIES ACT, 1963" (PDF). 10 May 1963.
  5. ^ "The Punjab Reorganisation Act, 1966". Indian Kanoon. Retrieved 14 April 2023.
  6. ^ "THE STATE OF HIMACHAL PRADESH ACT, 1970" (PDF). India Code. 25 December 1970. Retrieved 14 April 2023.
  7. ^ "Dr. Yashwant Singh Parmar laid foundation of Himachal Pradesh's development: Jai Ram Thakur". India Tribune. 5 August 2022. Retrieved 14 April 2023.
  8. ^ "Forty Years Ago, February 15, 1980: New Himachal CM". The Indian Express. 15 February 2020. Retrieved 14 April 2023.
  9. ^ "Thakur Ram Lal resigns as Himachal Pradesh CM to pave the way for Virbhadra Singh". India Today. Retrieved 14 April 2023.
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