Himachal 2024: Govt survives scare, samosas become political hot potato

Shimla: It was a year of firsts for Himachal Pradesh, not all positive. The ruling party lost the Rajya Sabha polls, communal tension erupted in Shimla and the state assembly got an MLA couple as Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu's wife Kamlesh won the Dehra bypoll.

Then there were some amusing stories -- the humble samosa triggered a CID probe and the endangered 'jungli murga' had its moment in the spotlight.

Bollywood actor Kangana Ranaut was elected to the Lok Sabha from Mandi constituency.

The state's financial crisis came out in the open when the Himachal Pradesh High Court ordered the attachment of the Himachal Pradesh Bhawan in Delhi after the government failed to pay dues of Rs 150 crore to a hydropower company.

In February, Congress candidate Abhishek Manu Singhvi lost the Rajya Sabha elections due to cross-voting by six MLAs of the ruling party, triggering a political crisis that briefly left the state government teetering on the edge.

This was the first time that a ruling party lost the Rajya Sabha polls despite having a majority.

The six Congress MLAs were disqualified by the speaker under the anti-defection law for defying the party whip and abstaining during voting on the annual budget.

In June, assembly bypolls were held to fill the seats that fell vacant after the disqualification of the Congress rebels. The Congress retained four of the six seats.

Three Independent MLAs also tendered their resignations on March 23 but the speaker accepted them on June 3. Bypolls were held in July to fill the three seats, of which the Congress won two.

One of the winning candidates was Kamlesh, the wife of Chief Minister Sukhu. With this, the Himachal Pradesh Assembly got its first MLA couple.

The Congress' strength in the 68-member assembly returned to 40, the number of seats it won in the 2022 assembly polls, while the BJP's increased from 25 to 28.

In September, violence broke out in Shimla as some locals demanded the demolition of an "illegal" portion of a mosque in the Sanjauli locality.

Protesters clashed with security personnel on September 11, breaking barricades and pelting stones as police used water cannons and batons to disperse them. About 10 people, including police and women, were injured in the state's first communal violence.

The mosque committee has agreed to demolish the unauthorised storeys and the work is in progress.

Cloudbursts and landslides claimed many lives in Himachal Pradesh between June 27 and October 2.

A total of 65 people died in cloudbursts. The deadliest cloudburst hit on the night of July 31 when 55 people, including schoolchildren, died in Shimla, Kullu and Mandi districts.

Himachal Pradesh witnessed its third driest post-monsoon season since 1901 with 98 per cent rain deficit. Shimla experienced two spells of light snowfall in December after a gap of 10 years.

A delay in the payment of salaries and pensions of government employees and pensioners due to the state's financial woes snowballed rapidly.

In a jolt to the government, the high court ordered the attachment of the Himachal Bhawan in Delhi's Mandi House in November for the recovery of Rs 150 crore the government owed Seli Hydropower Electrical Company.

Days later, a single bench of the high court ordered closure of 18 loss-making units of the Himachal Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation. However, the order was stayed by a division bench.

Amidst all this, the government faced allegations of financial mismanagement and pushing the state into debt from the opposition.

Soon after winning the assembly bypolls, the government took several steps, such as cutting subsidies on water and electricity, increasing GST on diesel and imposing milk cess to increase revenue.

The curious case of "missing samosas" sent Himachal Pradesh Police into a tizzy, triggering a political row and a meme fest on social media.

It began when three boxes of samosas and cakes meant to be served to Sukhu at a function at the CID headquarters on October 21 ended up being served to his security staff instead.

Soon after, a probe was launched into the matter by the CID, which termed the incident "anti-government". The BJP slammed the government, questioning its priorities.

Sukhu and his food made headlines again in December when after a video surfaced online purportedly showing him encouraging his associates to eat 'jungli murga' (Grey Jungle fowl) during a dinner in a remote area in Shimla, a charge denied by the chief minister.

This time, an FIR was registered against unidentified persons on charges of defamation and spreading false news.

Latching on to the issue, the BJP claimed that 'jungli murga' is an endangered species listed under Schedule I of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, and the Wildlife (Protection) Amendment Act, 2022 and hunting or eating it is illegal.

A policy for recruiting guest teachers on an hourly basis triggered angry reactions from unemployed youths, political parties and educationists.

The state government clarified that it was a temporary arrangement. It said it was recruiting 15,000 teachers across various categories in the Education Department and more than 3,000 had already been appointed.

On December 20, the state assembly passed the Himachal Pradesh Ceiling on Land Holdings (Amendment) Bill, 2024, allowing the government to transfer land or structure for religious, spiritual or charitable purposes, subject to a maximum limit of 30 acres.