BJP-backed Thinle Dichen Elected Lahaul-Spiti Zila Parishad Chairperson.
Shimla:
BJP-backed Kaza ward member Thinle Dichen was elected chairperson of the Lahaul-Spiti Zila Parishad on Monday, defeating Congress-backed candidate Shashi Kiran by a narrow margin of one vote.
Dichen secured five votes, while Shashi Kiran polled four votes in the closely contested election, which was attended by all nine elected Zila Parishad members.
The Lahaul-Spiti Zila Parishad has 10 seats, but elections have so far resulted in members being elected to only nine seats. Before the election, four members were backed by the Congress, three by the BJP and two by the Vikas Manch.
The election for the vice-chairperson’s post followed immediately. Congress-backed Suresh Kumar, Zila Parishad member from the Warpa ward, won the post with six votes, defeating Vikas Manch-backed candidate Ranjit, who received three votes.
The results have resulted in the two key positions being shared between the BJP and Congress, with the chairperson’s post going to a BJP-backed member and the vice-chairperson’s post being secured by Congress.
The proceedings were conducted under the supervision of Deputy Commissioner Kiran Bhadana, who presided over the meeting and formally announced the results. All four Congress-backed, three BJP-backed and two Vikas Manch-backed members were present.
The election had earlier been postponed on September 21 after the required quorum was not met, as only the four Congress-backed members attended. October 5 was subsequently fixed as the fresh date.
Former MLA and BJP State Working Committee member Ravi Thakur congratulated Thinle Dichen and thanked party workers for their support. He described the victory as significant for the BJP ahead of the Assembly elections and said it would boost party workers’ morale. District president of BJP, Rigzin Samphel Hayerpa congratulated the newly elected BJP backed Chairperson of Zila Parishad, Thinle Dichen.
Lahaul-Spiti MLA Anuradha Rana and District Congress president Dorje Larje congratulated the newly elected Congress backed Vice Chairperson of Zila Parishad, Suresh Kumar.
The new Zila Parishad leadership will now face key challenges concerning roads, education, healthcare, tourism and basic infrastructure across the remote tribal district.
