Shimla, June 1 -- A political slugfest has started between the Congress and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) following the results of the Himachal civic body polls with saffron party winning three (Solan, Mandi, Dharamshala) out of four municipal corporations and ruling party retaining Palampur. While BJP called the results a mandate against the Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu's government, Congress said the claims were 'far from reality'. "The mandate is clear. The people have rejected Congress and blessed BJP. These results are a strong indication for the 2027 Assembly elections. The message from Himachal Pradesh is clear - Congress is on its way out and BJP is on its way in," said state BJP president Rajeev Bindal. Hitting out at Congress, Bindal said Congress leaders who had been claiming that BJP's influence had ended in Mandi should now look at their position. "Similarly in Kangra district, which Congress claimed was slipping away from BJP, has actually slipped away from Congress," he added. He further said that even in Solan, where five ministers, the chief minister and senior Congress leaders campaigned extensively, saffron party claimed victory. Replying, the principal media advisor to the chief minister, Naresh Chauhan, said, "The results do not indicate any anti-incumbency against the Congress government and asserted that the party has received substantial public support across the state". He said the elections were conducted only in four municipal corporations and were limited in scope and involved only a small segment of the state's electorate. He further said contests were extremely close in several wards. "BJP had an advantage in Mandi due to the strong local influence of senior BJP leader Anil Sharma. In Solan, the difference in votes between the Congress and BJP was only around 922 votes. In Dharamshala too, a few seats tilted the balance. Such narrow margins cannot be interpreted as a verdict against the state government," he said. Referring to the political battle ahead of the 2027 Assembly elections, Chauhan said the Congress government would seek a mandate on the basis of its performance over five years. The elections were held on local issues and the saffron party managed to cash in on the stalled development. The outcome is being viewed as a significant political contest between the ruling Congress government led by CM Sukhu and the Opposition BJP ahead of the 2027 Assembly elections. The elections to the four municipal corporations were held on party symbols. According to the results, the BJP had managed to strengthen the party's urban base in the state. The Congress, however, emerged victorious in Palampur municipal corporation, preventing a complete sweep by the opposition. Psephologist from Kangra, Prem Sagar said, "The results are an indication of Congress disconnect with the ground reality. Despite the voting percentage not being very high still the mandate was against the ruling government which we have been seeing since the last two elections. Stopping of RDG or not getting adequate funds from Centre may be a concern for the government but for people what was of concern was that if roads were made or not, littering was the main issue in tourist destinations like Dharamshala. BJP managed to take the edge through a sustained campaign which Congress could not match." He added, "People working on the ground delivered result which was visible in Palampur where Congress won in name of development." The outcome assumes political significance as each municipal corporation is associated with influential political leaders from both parties. Political analysts say the BJP's victory in Solan municipal corporation (MC) is being seen as a major boost for state BJP president Rajeev Bindal, who hails from Solan district region. Conversely, the Congress defeat in Solan comes as an embarrassment for senior Congress leader and health minister Dhani Ram Shandil, who represents the Solan assembly constituency in the state legislature. Congress victory in Palampur largely to the personal influence and organisational strength of local Congress MLA Ashish Butail. The BJP's landslide victory in Mandi MC has further reinforced the political standing of LoP Jai Ram Thakur, whose home district is Mandi and who represents the Seraj Assembly constituency. BJP's victory in the Dharamshala municipal corporation has strengthened BJP MLA Sudhir Sharma's standing within the BJP as this result was a litmus test for turncoat Sharma who had switched allegiance to the BJP in 2024....