The fate of 54 candidates contesting for 17 seats in the high-stakes Dharamsala Municipal Corporation elections was sealed on Sunday as polling concluded peacefully amid an intense political contest between the ruling Congress and the BJP. However, the voter turnout remained comparatively subdued, with the civic body recording 60.01 per cent polling — noticeably lower than the 65 per cent turnout witnessed in the previous MC elections.
The polling process began at 7 am across all 17 wards amid tight security arrangements and continued without any major untoward incident.
Though long queues were witnessed outside some polling booths during the morning hours, voter participation remained moderate in several wards for most parts of the day. Election officials said polling remained peaceful and orderly across the Municipal Corporation area.
Out of the total 36,800 registered voters in the MC area, 22,083 exercised their franchise during the polling process. Of them, 11,001 were male voters, while 11,082 were females. Interestingly, female voter turnout at 60.70 per cent marginally surpassed male turnout, which stood at 59.33 per cent.
Among the wards, Sakoh recorded the highest polling percentage at 73.37 per cent, followed by Bhagsunag with 70.86 per cent and Forsythganj at 70.62 per cent. While the Dharamsala civic elections witnessed a direct contest between the BJP and the Congress, rebels contesting as Independents made it a triangular fight in some wards, particularly Bhagsunag and Kotwali Bazar.
Meanwhile, McLeodganj recorded the lowest turnout at 42.37 per cent, followed by Secretariat ward at 48.48 per cent and Khajanchi Mohalla at 51.35 per cent.
