ASSEMBLY elections are going to be held in Himachal Pradesh in the month of November. The BJP won the elections in 2017. The state has witnessed alternate governments between BJP and Congress since 1985. No party has been able to win two consecutive elections in the state since then.

The BJP, this time with all its strength that includes money, organization, enforcement agencies and other methods is trying to create an atmosphere that the trend of defeating the party in power, will be reversed. The BJP with its paraphernalia has also started intimidating Congress leaders and some of them are already joining them.

The Congress, the main opposition party believes that the trend will continue and will seek an easy victory for them. The Congress has been able to win four by-elections held recently; these include three legislative assembly seats and one, Mandi parliamentary seat.

MAJOR ISSUES

Whether the BJP will be able to break the trend and repeat itself in the state, only time will tell. The reality is that the people are fed up with the five-year rule of the BJP and are seeking an alternative.

The foremost issue dominating the current election is the stir created by the employees serving the state government on the “old pension scheme”. This has mobilized a large number of people in the state.

Employees have a big role in Himachal's politics. There are more than 1.30 lakh employees in the state who are working under the new pension scheme and are continuously opposing it. For the last 50 days, the organization of the employees has been fighting for the restoration of the old pension scheme and is continuing its hunger strike in all four Lok Sabha constituencies of the state. The Congress party in the state has promised that if they come to power, they will restore the old pension in the first cabinet meeting. They have even implemented it in Rajasthan and Chattisgarh.

The CPI(M) has also continuously been raising this demand for restoration of old pension inside and outside the assembly, through its lone MLA.

The other major issue which is dominating the political spectrum in the state is the minimum support price for agricultural produce and particularly apples. The recent mobilization of apple growers for the above demand was quite massive and took place after almost three decades.

The 1992 apple agitation led to the fall of the BJP government. The then major issue was apple scab and the absence of the state in procurement. The current agitation is driven by the collapse of prices in the market and the near domination of big buyers like Adani and Agrifresh etc., in deciding the procurement prices.

The government in the meantime raised GST on apple cartons, which further enhanced the cost of production of apples.

The land is a big issue in Himachal Pradesh. A good portion of agricultural land has been taken over for the construction of hydropower projects and for the widening of roads. Demands pertaining to the acquisition and adequate compensation are dominating in large parts of the state.

In Himachal Pradesh, 87 per cent of farmers are small and marginal and 63.4 per cent of people are dependent on agriculture. Cultivable land is close to 17 per cent and further fragmentation of land is taking place.

Nearly 67 per cent of the land is under the forest department. The peasants since long have been using fallow land adjoining their villages for cultivation. The number of such land claims is around 1,65,000. The courts have intervened on various occasions and some of the poor occupants were evicted in the past. This is a big issue across the state and continues to dominate during the elections as well.

Unemployment in the state is soaring with around 15 lakh unemployed in a population of 68 lakh. The government has scrapped most of the regular posts and employment is being generated on either contract basis, outsourced employees, part-time or scheme workers. Regularisation of workers is another major issue in the state and respective unions are incessantly raising this demand.

SCHOOLS BEING CLOSED

Schools are being closed in the rural areas, there is a continuous  fee hike, saffronisation and privatisation of education are continuing, acute shortage of teachers in schools and colleges is a common feature.

When there is no quality of education in government schools, people are migrating to the towns to educate their children and turn to private schools, but the government has no control over private schools and continues to loot the poor by increasing the fees incessantly.

The condition of public services in the state is also deteriorating at a rapid pace. Due to an acute shortage of staff, the public utilities are unable to perform.

Attacks on dalits and minorities and atrocities on women have increased during the BJP rule in Himachal Pradesh. During his reign, the social and economic condition of the marginalised sections deteriorated more than before. Issues of women's safety and social equality, amendments have been brought in the conversion law in the last session of the legislative assembly, which is a direct attack on religious freedom.

The Congress party has given a guarantee of giving Rs 1,500 per month to the women who come in the age group of 18-60 years if they come to power, the BJP government has implemented the decision to give 50 per cent concession in the fare to women in government buses and Aam Aadmi Party is talking about giving a guarantee of Rs 1,000 to women per month.

The massive corruption of the BJP in the state will make the party a big election issue everywhere. The recent appointments of teachers in three major universities in the state is a big issue. Nearly 400 teachers have been recruited. Some of them lack even basic eligibility criteria.  Youth and students have protested against these appointments.

The CPI(M) will contest 15 seats and will ensure that the BJP is defeated in the state.