The negligible presence of Muslims and the absence of any single dominantpolitical caste are, inter alia, factors responsible for the BharatiyaJanata Party’s defeat in state elections in India’s Himachal Pradesh.
This is a state where the Congress got the better off the saffron partywithout putting in any extraordinary effort.
As the BJP has been voted out of power in a state with over 95.17% Hindupopulation, it means that the electorate voted on the basis of thegovernment’s performance and not on emotive issues. The “double-enginegovernment” has been derailed here.
Counting of votes was still underway but it’s clear now that the BJP hasscripted history in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s home state of Gujarat asit won a record seventh term.
The party is on course to win the biggest majority by any party ever inGujarat – which is a big boost for the BJP ahead of the 2024 generalelections. It is leading in 157 seats in the 182-member assembly. It islikely set to surpass its best performance of winning 127 seats in 2002.
But the BJP’s electoral fortunes haven suffered a setback in HimachalPradesh where it has lost to the Congress, which is on track to win atleast 39 out of 68 seats.
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The BJP was hoping to retain Himachal which has never voted a party back topower since the 1980s. But the state appears to be sticking with the trend.
Himachal has only 2.18% Muslims and 1.16% Sikhs. Thus there was no scopefor whipping up communal passions. Even Uttar Pradesh chief minister YogiAdityanath, who addressed several public meetings, was not at hisrhetorical best. Issues like the Uniform Civil Code could not work in thisHimalayan state.
Himachal is a unique state – and Uttarakhand is the other one – where theupper castes dominate politics. About one-third of the population is saidto be of Thakurs (Rajputs) and 18% Brahmins. The state has about 25.2%Scheduled Caste and 5.7% Scheduled Tribe voters. The Other Backward Classesform 13.5% of the electorate.
