SOLAN/SHIMLA: Aam Aadmi Party National Convenor and Delhi Chief Minister, Arvind Kejriwal staged his first election road show in support of its candidate Anju in Solan town, a nerve-centre of the district on Thursday.
As many as 32 candidates have thrown their hats in the ring for the November 12 Himachal Pradesh state assembly elections in Solan district, which has five seats.
AAP Solan road show has turned out be a “damp squib”, when compared with his Mandi or Shahpur shows earlier.
Not only this, AAP's Solan Road Show and its other lackluster campaigns are "no" Match to BJP's Vijay Sankalp Campaign and Congress' Parivartan Pratigya Rallies that both the main rivals have been staging in Solan and other parties of Himachal to queer the political pitch to woo the voters.
The Solan district is home to Himachal’s industrial corridor of Baddi-Barotiwala-Nalagarh(BBN), where the stakes are higher for BJP and Congress and AAP.
BBN is witnessing cultural cross currents and houses big industrial fund-raisers as well.
AAP claims it was a success as it has galvanised the AAP workers in this transit town, a gateway to Punjab and Haryana.
The Parties are trying hard to woo the voters. But the voters, like in other parts of Himachal, in Solan district have also kept the Candidates and parties on the hooks, giving them run for their money.
Arvind Kejriwal, accompanied by AAP state convenor Surjeet Singh Thakur, appealed to the people of Himachal Pradesh to give them a chance for 5 years to judge the AAP government.
“You have tried BJP and Congress all these years, we request you to give five years to AAP and you will find the difference in Himachal as well”, said Kejriwal in his brief address after the road show.
“We have shown what is a Mohala clinic or a good hospital or a government school in Delhi”, Kejriwal said.
“We are doing these things in Punjab now and we want to do it Himachal as well if we get a five- year term here”, he asserted.
As far as Solan show is concerned, AAP karyakartas of rival groups were nearly in a melee during the road show that looked like an unruly crowd for a while.
In fact, AAP has fielded its candidates on all the 68 seats for the Himachal Pradesh Vidhan Sabha polls.
So is the case with another lackluster party- BSP, which has also fielded candidates on most of the seats except in tribal districts. BSP leaders have also not intensified its campaign so far.
But its leadership has yet to step up its campaign in support of its candidates who are fighting “lone or individual battle, facing the two traditional rival heavyweights- BJP and Congress- in the state.
There is just a week left for the voting, which is taking place on November 12. But AAP leadership has yet to launch its political offensive the way both Congress and BJP have been doing for last one week in the state.
There are feelers that AAP is targeting some constituencies in border areas of Punjab including Solan, Una and a constituency or two in Kangra district.
It is in these border areas, where its Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann could use his influence, at least to open an account for the AAP in the 13th Himachal Pradesh Vidhan Sabha.
As far as AAP is concerned, Kejriwal has found that the hills of this Himalayan state are still steeper for AAP if judged by the kind of response it has generated so far among the voters.
In fact, there is a sizeable opinion that Arvind Kejriwal “could not find a state-level leader in Himachal who could have led the campaign, with people rallying behind”.
Like Congress guarantee on restoration of Old Pension scheme, Kejriwal also supports OPS and he has made a point, charging that the BJP and Congress have been misleading people over the years.
In fact, OPS has also become a major poll issue including support price of tomato, main cash crop of Solan, and support price for apple along lines of that of Kashmir, with the farmers demanding Rs 60 per kg for Grade A apple, Rs 46 for Grade B and Rs 25 for Grade C apples.
AAP insiders claim that Delhi Chief Minister is instead on the prowl for a bigger more ambitious kill: To win Gujarat state assembly polls.
After getting a lukewarm response from Himachal, Kejriwal has focused his both eyes on the Gujarat polls to take on the combined might of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah in Gujarat, their home state and their “Model of Development”.
Gujarat is going to polls in two phases on December 1 and December 5. The counting of votes, however, for both Himachal and Gujarat would on the same day -December 8. 
Solan is not only a pollical centre of the district, it is a home to people from all the five constituencies of Solan, people from the different parts of Shimla, Sirmaur and Kinnaur as well.
Solan seat, in fact, is witnessing a triangular contest among ‘Sasur’, Dr Col Dhani Ram Shandil of Congress and his ‘Damaad’, Dr Rajesh Kashyap of BJP and Anju of AAP, while BSP candidate Rajender is also in fray.
Unlike his earlier two roadshows he had staged in Mandi and Shahpur before the announcement of the elections, Kejriwal’s Solan Show could not enthuse public at large.
AAP has been facing reverses as many of its office bearers deserted the party and joined BJP in the recent course of time.
In Contrast, BJP has pumped in its top leaders including Home minister Amit Shah, UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, National President JP Nadda, Jitendra Singh, Anurag Singh Thakur and Chief Ministers Jai Ram Thakur, Pushkar Singh Dhami (Uttarakhand) and Manohar Lal Khattar and other state incharge leaders.
They have campaigned in all 68 constituencies and lunched campaigns on social media as well to change “Rivaaj in Himachal”.
On the other, Congress leaders Priyanka Gandhi, Chhattisgarh CM Bhupesh Baghel, Sachin Pilot, PCC President Pratibha Singh, Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu and Mukesh Agnihotri, Kaul Singh Thakur, Vikramaditya Singh, party state incharge Rajeev Shukla, Gokul Patel and Pratap Singh Baswa and others have been campaigning in the state in support of Congress candidates.
As far as Solan district is concerned, AAP has fielded its candidates on all the five seats. But its campaign remains on a low key.
While BJP is facing rebels in Nalagarh and Arki so is the case with the Congress in Arki.
The former BJP MLA, K L Thakur is giving sleepless nights to its official candidate Lakhwinder Singh Rana, former Congress sitting MLA, who has joined BJP.
Similarly, BJP and Congress are facing rebels- Surender Kumar and Rajinder Kumar against the official candidates- Gobind Ram Sharma(BJP) and Sanjay Awasthi, the sitting Congress MLA.
Yogi Adityanath addressed Vijay Sankalp rally in Kasauli in support of Dr Rajiv Saizal, a seat where the party faces anti-incumbency and the hostile employees, demanding Old Pension Scheme.
Solan district: Total: 32
Solan (SC) AC (Total 4 )
Dhani Ram Shandil (INC), Rajesh Kashyap (BJP), Anju (AAP), Rajender (BSP)
Arki AC (Total 7)
Sanjay(INC), Govind Ram Sharma(BJP), Kamesh (BSP), Jeet Ram (AAP), Jaidev Singh(RDP) Rajender, Sanjay Kumar (Independent candidates).
Nalagarh AC (Total 8)
Hardeep Singh Bawa (INC), Lakhwinder Singh Rana (BJP), Paras Ram (BSP), Jagdish Chand (RDP), Dharam Pal (AAP), Kishori Lal Sharma (Swabhiman Party), Krishan Lal Thakur and Jagpal Singh Rana (Independent candidates)
Doon AC (Total 6)
Ram Kumar (INC), Paramjit Singh (BJP), Nagender Chand (BSP), Swaran Singh (AAP), Balwant Singh (RDP) Des Raj Chauhan (Independent candidates).
Kasauli (SC) AC (Total 7)
Vinod Sultanpuri (INC), Rajiv Saizal (BJP), Ram Rattan (BSP), Harmel Singh (AAP), Rajiv Kumar Kaundal (RDP), Rajender (Himachal Jan Kranti Party), Om Prakash (Independent).
