The Dharamsala municipal elections carry added political significance as the city is considered the home turf of former Congress minister Sudhir Sharma, who had defected to the BJP in 2024. Since his switchover to the BJP, relations between him and Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu have remained strained.
The Dharamsala municipal body has witnessed sharp political swings over the past decade. It was upgraded from a municipal council to a corporation in 2015 during the Virbhadra Singh-led Congress government when Sudhir Sharma was the Town and Country Planning Minister. The Congress swept the first municipal elections held in 2016 by winning 15 of the 18 seats while the BJP managed to get only three seats. Rajni Vyas became the first Mayor while prominent Congress leader Devinder Singh Jaggi served the second term.
The political tide shifted in 2021 when the BJP secured 10 seats and ruled the corporation, reducing the Congress to just five. Onkar Singh Nehria became the first BJP Mayor of Dharamsala. However, in a dramatic turn of events during the 2023 mayoral election, Neenu Sharma of the Congress was elected in a draw of lots after some BJP councillors cross-voted.
Nomination filling is underway and the Congress appears to have seized the early momentum, while the BJP’s delay in announcing candidates has raised political curiosity. The upcoming elections are expected to be closely watched not just for civic governance but also as a reflection of shifting political loyalties in one of the state’s most high-profile urban centres.