'Mujhe Yaad Rakhna!': A full-page photo of Virbhadra Singh and a three-letter appeal. That is what seems to be Congress’s last trump card in the crucial Himachal Pradesh elections slated on November 12.
Former Chief Minister, who ruled the state six terms apart from serving as a union minister, Virbhadra Singh was always a factor in the elections. And, the Congress’s iconic face in Himachal Pradesh even now.
“That’s the power of Raja Sahib, that is also his love for people. He was born a Congressman and died a Congressman. Despite being a Raja (King), he led a simple life but ruled the hearts,” says the party’s sitting MLA Harish Janartha, the Congress candidate from Shimla.
Shimla, Himachal's capital, has been decked up with hoardings of Vibhadra Singh, ahead of the polls. This is the card that the PCC, now headed by his wife Pratibha Singh, has come out with as a counter to the BJP's bid to invoke Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s emotional connect with the state.“Modi ji has always treated Himachal Pradesh as his second time. He worked in the state for six-seven years and established a bond that he nurtured during all these years” says state BJP president Suresh Kashyap.
The Congress, which initially attempted to bring back the memories of Indira Gandhi through Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, has now sought to bring in back fond memories of Virbhadra Singh.
“We tried to fight the polls on local issues. Performance of the Jai Ram Thakur government and issues like inflation, unemployment, OPS and governance but the BJP made an attempt to divert the public attention from Jai Ram Thakur and his rule,” says Naresh Chauhan, PCC spokesman.
The BJP sees this as the Congress's last move ahead of the polls.
"Virbhadra Singh commands a lot of respect. We knew the Congress will use his images to create an emotional impact on the voters on polling day. This will have some favourable impact in few constituencies like Shimla (rural) Rampur, Rohru and also Shimla but not much elsewhere," says Ganesh Dutt, BJP spokesman.
In the 2021 bypoll, especially the Mandi Parliamentary seat, which Pratibha Singh had won, the Congress had sought the vote as a “tribute to Virbhadra Singh and his contributions to the state”.
Singh said that “it’s his legacy, which she has decided to carry forward. Once the Congress government is formed, we will implement Virbhadra Singh's model of development. He has been the architect of Modern Himachal”.
