Shimla chose CM Sukhu over PM Modi, says Himachal Industries minister

The people of Shimla chose Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu over Prime Minister Narendra Modi by giving a massive mandate to the Congress in the civic elections, Industries Minister Harshvardhan Chauhan said on Friday.

Addressing reporters here, Chauhan said the BJP had turned the Shimla Municipal Corporation election into a Modi-versus-Sukhu battle.

The BJP put up hoardings of the prime minister and sought votes in his name but Shimla residents voted for good governance and the Congress' ideology, he said.

The Congress won 24 of the 34 wards in the Shimla Municipal Corporation. The BJP won nine wards and the CPI(M) one while the AAP, which had contested from 21 seats, drew a blank.

Chauhan further said that the BJP's Himachal Pradesh leadership has failed thrice in the past two years -- the 2021 bypolls, 2022 assembly polls and the 2023 civic elections in Shimla.

The minister said Shimla is the capital of Himachal Pradesh and people from all districts and ..