Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami retained his post by defeating Nirmala Gahtori of Congress by a record margin of over 55,000 votes in the Champawat Assembly seat by-poll on Friday. The by-election to Champawat assembly seat was held on May 31, in which more than 64 per cent voters cast their votes.
Champawat election officials said Dhami got 58,258 votes against Gahtori’s 3,233 votes, who won by a record margin of 55,025 votes. He said Gahtori lost his bail.
Although the Chief Minister of Uttarakhand who contested by-elections never lost, this is the highest margin with which a CM has won a by-election in the hill state. Dhami has rewritten the record of Vijay Bahuguna, who won the 2012 by-election from Sitarganj on a Congress ticket by 40,000 votes.
Celebrations broke out at the BJP state office as Dhami headed for a lopsided victory, taking a massive lead in the first round of counting of votes. “It is a national record. State BJP spokesperson Shadab Shams said that our Chief Minister has got 93 per cent votes.
Dhami had to contest a by-election to become a member of the assembly, a constitutional requirement he had to fulfill to remain chief minister after losing to Khatima in the February state elections. Dhami had lost to Bhuvan Chandra Kapri of the Congress in Khatima, a seat he had won in the 2012 and 2017 assembly elections.
Soon after Dhami was sworn in as Chief Minister for the second consecutive term, Kailash Chandra Gahtori, the then MLA from Champawat, offered him to vacate his seat to make way for him to contest from there. Gahtori had resigned from the seat on April 21, paving the way for Dhami to contest from there. Before the by-election, Gahtori also accompanied him on all his campaign tours and road shows.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia were the first to congratulate Dhami on his victory.
After Dhami’s victory, Modi tweeted, “Congratulations to the dynamic Chief Minister of Uttarakhand Pushkar Singh Dhami for his record victory from Champawat.”
“I am sure he will work even harder for the progress of Uttarakhand. I thank the people of Champawat for putting their faith in the BJP and appreciate the hard work of our workers,” the Prime Minister said.
Congratulating Dhami on his “historic victory”, Adityanath said in a tweet, “This victory is dedicated to the Prime Minister’s policies for the welfare of the people, your development-oriented leadership and the hard work of the party workers.”
Scindia tweeted and wished that the victory march of Uttarakhand under the leadership of Dhami and the guidance of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi continues relentlessly.
Madhya Pradesh CM Chouhan said, ‘The development work being done by you under the guidance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has a seal of victory.
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma congratulated Dhami for getting a “massive mandate” in Champawat. “This victory is dedicated to the people’s unwavering faith in the principles and politics that guide the vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi,” he said.
With input from agencies
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