Shimla: Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu has landed in Delhi after a race for the Pradesh Congress (PCC) president heated up following the party high command’s summoning of two prospective contenders—former PCC president Kuldeep Rathore and Education minister Rohit Thakur.
Rathore and Thakur are back in Shimla, suggesting that the party leadership’s separate consultations with them are done, and the name could be revealed soon.
The party in charge of Himachal Pradesh, Rajni Patil, who was in Shimla this week during the unveiling of the statue of six-time Chief Minister late Virbhadra Singh, is learned to have already proposed both the names to the party, leaving it to the AICC top leadership to take a decision.
At the same time, Chief Minister Sukhu has made a sudden visit to Delhi to prevent his detractors from advancing their candidate and to ensure that either his preferred choice or a “compromise” nominee is selected—securing his position for the remaining two years of his tenure.
The All India Congress Committee (AICC) had dissolved the Himachal Pradesh Congress Committee (HPCC) and all its district and block-level bodies in November 2024, though Pratibha Singh was retained as the state unit chief.
Until now, Education minister Rohit Thakur was considered the frontrunner for the post, and he had also given his consent to give up his position as cabinet minister. A four-time MLA from Jubbal-Kotkhai, the state’s apple belt, Thakur is also the grandson of former Chief Minister late Thakur Ram Lal, who had also served as Governor of Andhra Pradesh.
But, during this week’s visit of AICC general secretary Priyanka Gandhi and Congress Parliamentary Board Chairperson Sonia Gandhi, who was also joined by Rahul Gandhi in Shimla, the name of Kuldeep Rathore, a sitting MLA from Theog, also cropped up.
A leader with long-standing experience in the organisation, he has already served as PCC president and AICC spokesman. Interestingly, both Rathore and Thakur hail from the upper Shimla area.
Insiders say that Delhi initially offered the post to Deputy Chief Minister Mukesh Agnihotri, who agreed to accept the role if he could keep his position as Deputy CM. But the party insisted on enforcing the principle of one man, one post. Thus, the name of Rohit Thakur came into focus. “I have given my consent to the party to quit the cabinet rank if given the responsibility of taking over as PCC president,” confirmed Thakur.
At the same time, Rathore also says he was prepared to take up any responsibility to build up the party in Himachal Pradesh. “I had meaningful discussions with senior central leaders in Delhi and left it up to the president’s high command,” he declared.