Shimla, Oct 25 (IANS) Union Steel Minister Virbhadra Singh Sunday said his wife was denied a Congress ticket for Himachal Pradesh assembly by-poll Nov 7 because the party has decided to move away from dynasty politics.
“I don’t know, but I was told that my wife (Pratibha Singh) was not given ticket due a new principle adopted by the party not to allocate tickets to family members of party leaders,” Virbhadra Singh told reporters here.

“I am glad that this (dynasty) policy has been adopted…and started from me. All this was not implemented in the (recent) assembly polls (Haryana, Maharashtra and Arunachal Pradesh) and in some other states. Himachal is the first state picked up for this by the party,” Virbhadra Singh, who was the state chief minister for five times, said.

His wife, Pratibha Singh, was eyeing to contest the election from Rohru assembly.

Himachal Pradesh will Nov 7 go to the by-polls for two constituencies of Rohru and Jawali.

Asked if he was consulted by the party before his wife was denied ticket, Singh said: “It’s a personal matter between me and the party and I don’t want to comment on it.”

Pratibha Singh, a former MP from Mandi, had said a day before the official candidate was named by the party that she would not contest the assembly by-elections.

The Congress has allotted the ticket to greenhorn Manjit Singh.

The Rohru constituency has been a Virbhadra Singh stronghold for the past two decades. The seat fell vacant after Virbhadra Singh contested and won the Lok Sabha elections.

On campaigning for the party candidates in the state, he said: “I am an ordinary worker of the party. I will ensure the victory of the candidates on both the seats. But the state party president (Kaul Singh Thakur) and the state legislative party leader (Vidya Stokes) are more responsible for ensuring their victory.”

He did not reply when asked whether Pratibha Singh was a better choice for the party in Rohru.

Virbhadra Singh said he had represented the Rohru assembly segment five times in the past, and he never went there for campaign. “This time I am going there for five days for the Congress candidate.”