Himachal Pradesh Election 2022: Tea shop owner replaces 4-time Shimla seat winner
A tea shop owner in Himachal Pradesh's Shimla has replaced Bharatiya Janata Party minister Suresh Bhardwaj who has contested the Shimla Urban seat four times consecutively. Suresh Bhardwaj will now contest the Assembly polls from Kasumpti.
FollowSuresh Bhardwaj, a BJP minister who ran for the Shimla Urban seat four times, has been replaced by the proprietor of a tea business in Himachal Pradesh's Shimla. After Sanjay Sood, a Shimla tea store owner, received the party's nomination to run from Shimla Urban, Bhardwaj will now compete in the Assembly elections from Kasumpti.
Speaking to the media, Sood stated he really appreciates that the BJP chose him as their candidate to run in a competitive district like Shimla Urban. "Since it is a significant honour for a modest worker like me, I am in seventh heaven. Working for the BJP was, in my opinion, a wise choice," he added.
He claimed to have come from a very low-income family and to have been running his tea store since 1991. "I used to sell newspapers at a bus stop before this. Despite coming from a low-income household, the desire to help others persisted in the heart," he said.
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For his schooling and cultural studies, he gave the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) credit. He said that selling newspapers helped him pay for his academic expenses. At that time, he also had the chance to serve for the RSS student organisation "Vidyarthi Parishad" (ABVP).
"I spent five years working for the student council before having to leave due to financial difficulties. Later, I spent two years working as a Medical Representative before opening this tea store in 1991. This enables me to provide food for and support my family's costs," he continued.
Before becoming the party's vice president, Sood claimed he served as Shimla Mandal Urban's general secretary. Later, he was appointed the district's media coordinator for the party.
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"I was given a ticket by the party while performing this duty (as media coordinator), and I twice held the office of Shimla Municipal Corporation councillor. I then assumed the position of Shimla unit president," he added.
When asked if there was any hostility against his candidacy among party members, he responded, "I want to make the clear argument that no one can be upset if they support the Lotus flower, the BJP's electoral emblem. It aches, but only briefly. Being dissatisfied when you don't obtain what you desire is normal."
A BJP minister named Suresh Bhardwaj responded to the unexpected change in the candidate and said, "In Himachal Pradesh, it is not customary to change one seat and fight in another seat. Surely it is strange."
