CHANDIGARH: A tiny Himachal Pradesh will have a chief minister and a deputy CM, two days after the Congress sprang back to power in the 68-member Assembly, winning 40 seats, pushing the BJP to number 2 with 25 seats. Four-time MLA Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu is the new Chief Minister and Mukesh Agnihotri will be the Deputy CM. This is the first time that the state will have a deputy to the CM.
The swearing-in ceremony will take place on Sunday. Party leaders, including party chief Mallikarjun Kharge, Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi will attend the function. Party sources said the decision came after the meeting of the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) in Shimla, where all 40 MLAs signed on a letter agreeing to Sukhu being the CM.
Earlier in the day Kharge cleared Sukhu’s name as he was the Himachal Congress Campaign Committee chief during the recently concluded assembly elections. Sources said his name was cleared based on inputs from the elected MLAs. In Friday’s meeting, party MLAs unanimously passed a resolution authorising the party president to pick the legislature party leader to become the chief minister.
After the CLP meeting in Shimla, party observer Bhupesh Bhagel (Chhattisgarh CM) announced the top post for Sukhu, adding that the new CM and Deputy CM would be sworn in on December 11. Meanwhile, the supporters of state party chief Pratibha Singh have kept up their protest outside the Cecil Hotel in Shimla where party observers Baghel and former Haryana CM Bhupinder Singh Hooda were staying.
Pratibha is opposed to Sukhu being made the CM and conveyed her displeasure to the party leadership. However, she had to relent. Congress MLAs made a beeline to the hotel where party observers were staying. As many state party leaders, including Pratibha Singh and leader of the opposition in the outgoing assembly Mukesh Agnihotri besides Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu met the observers individually.
Sources said that the party was not in favour of Pratibha being the CM as they were averse to facing a bypoll from the Mandi Lok Sabha seat in case she was made the CM and later an assembly by-election to get her elected as MLA. She reportedly bargained for the post of deputy CM for her son Vikramaditya Singh.