The Ghumarwin Assembly Constituency has Rajinder Garg of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Rajesh Dharmani from the Indian National Congress (INC), and Rakesh Chopra of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) making it a three-way contest for this year’s Himachal Pradesh Assembly Elections. Rakesh Chopra previously contested elections in 2012 as an independent candidate.

Also Read | 5 key battlegrounds in Himachal this poll season

Himachal Pradesh has been
cyclically governed by BJP and Congress since the 1985 elections. However, this
year, with the entry of the Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP in the HP elections, many
anticipate that the political scenario of the state shall be altered. 

The BJP had won 44 of
Himachal’s 68 assembly constituencies last time and the Congress had won 21.
The CPI (M) had won one seat. A party needs to win 35 seats for a majority to
form the government in the state.

In 2017, Rajinder Garg of the BJP
defeated Rajesh Dharmani of the Congress by 10,435 votes. Suresh Kumar,
an independent candidate, also contested the elections in 2017. 

Ghumarwin is one of the 68
assembly constituencies in Himachal Pradesh. Ghumarwin falls under the Bilaspur
district and Hamirpur Lok Sabha Constituency. Ghumarwin has more than 79,000
eligible voters. 

Also Read | Who will be Himachal’s next chief minister?

In 2012, Rajesh Dharmani of the
Congress defeated Rajinder Garg of the BJP by 3,208 votes. Karam Dev
Dharmani of Himachal Lokhit Party (HLP), Nand Lal of All India Trinamool
Congress (AITMC), Jitender of the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and independent
candidates Rakesh Kumar Chopra and Kashmir Singh also contested the HP Assembly
Elections in 2012. 

Himachal Pradesh votes in a single round on November 12. Results will be announced on December 8.

Quick facts about the Ghumarwin
Assembly seat  

Name of the assembly
constituency, district: Ghumarwin, Bilaspur district

Polling date: November 12, 2022

Sitting MLA, party: Rajinder
Garg, BJP

Key candidates, party in 2022:
Rakesh Chopra (AAP), Rajinder Garg (BJP), Rajesh Dharmani (INC)

Winning candidate, party in
2017: Rajinder Garg, BJP

Runner-up name, party
2017:  Rajesh Dharmani, INC

Winning margin in 2017: 
10,435

Top 3 candidates 2017: Rajesh
Dharmani (INC), Rajinder Garg (BJP), Suresh Kumar (Independent)

Top 3 candidates 2012: Rajesh
Dharmani (INC), Rajinder Garg (BJP),  Rakesh Kumar Chopra (Independent)

Lok Sabha constituency: Hamirpur