Himachal Assembly elections: Amit Shah appeals women, youth to vote in maximum numbers to elect strong govt

Taking to Twitter, Shah said, "Only a strong and corruption-free government can fulfill the aspirations of the people of Devbhoomi by keeping Himachal Pradesh at the forefront of development".

"I appeal to all the voters of Himachal, especially mothers, sisters and youth, to vote in maximum numbers and elect a strong government for the golden tomorrow of the state," Shah said in a tweet in Hindi.

Himachal Pradesh elections will decide the fate of 412 candidates contesting the Assembly polls from 68 constituencies.

Voting is taking place on all the 68 Assembly seats of the state, the majority of which (44) had come in the BJP's bag in the 2017 Assembly polls, with Congress being restricted to just 21 seats.

The Election Commission has set up 7,881 polling stations. A total of 28.5 lakh male voters, 27 lakh women voters and 38 voters belonging to the third gender will decide which party will form the government for the next five years.

With the maximum Assembly seats at 15, Kangra district is crucial in deciding the direction of the elections.

The BJP is eying on retaining power in the state overturning the trend of an alternative government in the state since 1982, while the Congress is posing its faith in its '10 guarantees' that the party has promised to deliver on if it comes to power. The Aam Aadmi Party is also aiming at making inroads into the hill state hoping to present a strong performance in the polls.

However, both BJP and Congress are also fighting the problem of rebels on some seats.

On one side BJP which is eying to change the trend of alternate government has promised for the implementation of the Uniform Civil Code, eight lakh jobs in the state, 33 per cent reservation for women in government jobs and educational institutions.

While Congress which is the oldest party of the country has promised to fulfill the long pending demand of the hilly state of the Old Pension Scheme. The party has also promised to give 1 lakh government jobs. To woo women, who form 48 per cent of the electorate, Congress has promised Rs 1,500 per month to each of them aged between 18 and 60. It has also promised 300 units of free electricity.

Besides these three parties, parties like Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), Communist Party of India (Marxist), Communist Party of India (CPI) and Rashtriya Devbhumi Party (RDP) are in the fray.

Meanwhile, 67 companies of Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) comprising 6,700 personnel and 15 Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) companies have been deployed to hold free and fair Assembly polls in Himachal Pradesh.

Besides this, 50,000 government employees have been put on poll duty. As many as 25,000 police officers are also stationed across the state.

Teams from the National Disaster Relief Force (NDRF) and the State Disaster Relief Force (SDRF) comprising 800 personnel have also been posted.

In 2017, BJP swept the Himachal polls, bagging 44 of the total 68 seats while Congress managed to get just 21 seats. (ANI)