Does Manish Tewari’s win signal end of Pawan Bansal’s politics in Chandigarh?
Manish Tewari’s Lok Sabha win in Chandigarh has put an end to the rumblings of discontent in the local Congress unit against his candidature.
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Congress leader and INDIA bloc candidate Manish Tewari celebrates with others after winning the Lok Sabha elections, in Chandigarh, Tuesday, June 4, 2024. (PTI)With Manish Tewari’s Lok Sabha win, the Congress unit in Chandigarh is gearing up to chart a new roadmap, moving away from the Pawan Bansal era of politics.
Tewari was given the choice to contest from Ludhiana or Anandpur Sahib. But he was keen on contesting from Chandigarh, a seat Bansal wanted. Bansal, who was given a ticket on eight occasions, won four elections in Chandigarh and lost four.
When Tewari was declared the Chandigarh candidate, Bansal and many sitting Congress councillors close to him did not openly campaign for Tewari. In fact, Bansal and Tewari shared a stage for the first time when the former appeared at a Priyanka Gandhi rally. Chandigarh Congress president H S Lucky even expelled Bansal’s supporters from the party for “anti-party activities” on Monday, a day before counting.
However, on Tuesday, when the results revealed that Tewari had won the Chandigarh seat by 2,16,657 votes, the internal differences were forgotten as even Bansal’s supporters stepped out to participate in the celebrations.
“Now, with Tewari beginning his innings from Chandigarh, Pawan Bansal will not be able to bounce back from Chandigarh at least. He (Tewari) will have the complete say in Congress affairs of the city. The position that Bansal enjoyed will now be Tewari’s new throne,” a senior Congress councillor said, speaking on the condition of anonymity.
Luck finally favours Chandigarh Congress president
If there was one person in the Chandigarh Congress for whom it was a high-stakes election, it was party president H S Lucky. Tewari’s candidature had sparked rumblings of dissent within the party unit and prompted Bansal to say, “Chandigarh requires a new face”. Lucky had been losing the sheen in the Congress after losing the municipal polls four times, in 2006, 2011,2016 and 2021. Sources said there was also speculation that Bansal would have moved to remove Lucky from the president’s post if Tewari had lost the elections. Tewari’s win would have come as a welcome relief.
“This election can make and break careers. The AAP cadre worked in favour of Tewari but we can say his win has made Lucky’s foothold stronger. Had Congress lost the elections, Lucky’s career would have ended as he would have been marked as one who tried sabotaging the career of those who made him what he is today,” a BJP councillor who moved from Congress to BJP said.
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