High 75% voter turnout in Himachal Pradesh assembly elections

CHANDIGARH: Himachal Pradesh registered a record 75% polling for the 68-seats assembly house on Sunday as voters exuberance beat the winter chill. The result of polls that would decide fate of 459 candidates in fray would be announced along on December 20 along with result of assembly polls in Gujarat.

The polling was peaceful across the state and no incident of violence was reported till time of voting. High polling per cent was recorded in districts of Mandi 76.95%, Solan 80.34%, Sirmour 81.48 and 78% in Kullu, chief electoral officer Narinder Chauhan maintained.

The fight is largely direct between the BJP and Congress but the new party in the arena Himachal Lokhit Party (HLP) and the Left hopes to make the contest triangular in many seats. Other parties in fray namely Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), Trinamool Congress (TMC) and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) could twist the tale for the main candidates of the BJP and Congress in few seats.

Likely triangular contest in many seats portends a close contest between the BJP and Congress. Most pre poll surveys have predicted a close contest. Adding to the complexity is the 'silence of the voters' that chief minister Prem Kumar Dhumal reads as lack of anti incumbency among the voters. The Congress expects rebel candidates of BJP in contest to favor their chances. The BJP is harping on spate of corruption issues at Centre to turn voters into their favor.

Five time chief minister Virbhadra Singh from Congress voted at his native place in Rampur now a reserved seat. Singh is contesting from rural Shimla a seat he is likely to win comfortably. Encumber BJP chief minister Prem Kumar Dhumal exercised his franchise in Samirpur in district Hamirpur. Among prominent leaders Union Commerce Minister Anand Sharma also cast vote in capital Shimla.

The Election Commission has set up 7,253 polling stations for 46,08,359 electors.