Rebels won't affect bypolls, BJP will win both seats: Jai Ram

Himachal Pradesh chief minister (CM) Jai Ram Thakur said rebels will not have an impact on the bypolls and both the seats, which were earlier held by the Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP), will still remain with the party.

Replying to a media query in Mandi on Saturday, the CM said some people within the party were trying to destabilise him.

He agreed that a few party men were trying to create disturbance, but these rebels, among which one is contesting the bypoll, is just their exposure and nothing else.

The CM said that BJP is the strongest political party in the country and the state at present.

“Such things have been raised during the Lok Sabha elections, but the results are in front of everyone. The party is fully united and strong, and both the seats which have been vacated due to the election of MPs, will be won by the BJP candidates,” said Thakur.

Thakur said that the ticket can be given to one person where 14 people have asked for tickets from these two seats. He added that rebels will be expelled from the party.

In the face of criticisms about the Global Investor Meet (GIM), the CM said that the Congress party led previous state government spent more than one crore to woo investors during their last term, but it did not do anything because the Congress party failed to fulfill commitments with investors but his government is in touch with investors and living no stone un-turn to turn the commitments into the reality.

The CM reminded that so far memorendums of understanding (MOUs) worth ₹70,000 crore have been signed and the fields include tourism, information technology, agriculture and horticulture.

He said that blessings of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and home minister Amit Shah are with him and both dignitaries will participate in the function of GIM soon.