Mandi
Lok Sabha constituency
Mandi Lok Sabha constituency within Himachal Pradesh
Constituency details
Country	India
Region	North India
State	Himachal Pradesh
Assembly constituencies	17: Kinnaur, Bharmour, Lahaul & Spiti, Manali, Kullu, Banjar, Anni, Karsog, Sundernagar, Nachan, Seraj, Darang, Jogindernagar, Mandi, Balh, Sarkaghat and Rampur
Established	1952
Reservation	None
Member of Parliament
17th Lok Sabha
Incumbent Pratibha Singh
Party	Indian National Congress
Elected year	2021
Preceded by	Ram Swaroop Sharma

Mandi Lok Sabha constituency is one of the four Lok Sabha (parliamentary) constituencies in Himachal Pradesh state in northern India. Pratibha Singh, representing INC, won the last Lok Sabha byelection in 2021 from Mandi following the death of Ram Swaroop Sharma who won in 2019 general Lok Sabha election.

History

Mandi Parliamentary constituency already emerged as a hot bed of politics where not only the BJP and the Congress will fight for their prestige, but is the only seat in the state where the Left front has popped up a candidate.^[1] The constituency then was named as Mandi - Mahasu was represented by Rani Amrit Kaur of the erstwhile Patiala state and Sh Gopi Ram Mandi during 1952–57. In the Lok Sabha elections that followed in 1957, the seat was represented by Raja Joginder Sen of the erstwhile Mandi state, who represented the seat till 1962. In the following elections that year Raja Lalit Sen of Sundarnagar or the erstwhile Suket State was elected. He repeated his victory in the 1967 elections.

However, in period from 1977 to 1979, the constituency was represented by Ganga Singh who represented the Janata Party, which came to power at the centre immediately after the elections that followed the imposition of emergency in the country and the Congress, under Indira Gandhi was routed. He defeated Congress candidate Virbhadra Singh.

Then came along the man, who called himself the son-of-the-soil, Sukh Ram. He switched from state politics to the Parliament and won comfortably in 1985. In the next election, however, it was again another blue-blooded royal, Maheshwar Singh, scion of the erstwhile Kullu state who drubbed the son-of-the-soil at the polls.

But Sukh Ram bounced back and won again in 1994, but was expelled from the Congress a couple of years later, following the reported recovery of large amounts of cash from his residence. To re-establish his political dominion Sukh Ram floated Himachal Vikas Congress and came back into politics with a bang – winning five Assembly seats in 1998 along with wresting Shimla (reserved) parliamentary seat from the Congress in 1999. In 1998, Sukh Ram's HVC under an alliance with the BJP supported the candidature of Maheshwar Singh, who won easily. In 2004, Congress candidate Pratibha Singh defeated Maheshwar Singh. In the last Parliament elections 2009, Congress candidate Virbhadra Singh defeated Maheshwar Singh by a very small gap.^[2]

Vidhan Sabha segments

Mandi Lok Sabha constituency presently comprises the following 17 Vidhan Sabha (legislative assembly) segments:^[1]

Members of Lok Sabha

^ bye-poll

Election results

2021 by-election

Bye-elections, 2021 : Mandi

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	INC	Pratibha Singh	365,650	49.23	23.55
	BJP	Brigadier Khushal Thakur	3,56,884	48.05	20.70
	NOTA	None of the Above	12,626	1.70	1.14
Majority			8,766
Turnout			7,53,566	57.98
	INC gain from BJP		Swing

2019 Election

2019 Indian general elections: Mandi

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	BJP	Ram Swaroop Sharma	647,189	68.75	18.81
	INC	Aashray sharma	2,41,730	25.68	18.78
	CPI(M)	Dilip Singh Kayath	14,838	1.58	0.34
	BSP	Ses Ram	9,060	0.96	0.25
	None of the Above	None of the Above	5,298	0.56	0.29
Majority			4,05,459	43.07	37.59
Turnout			9,43,148	73.60	10.48
	BJP hold		Swing

2014 election

2014 Indian general elections: Mandi

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	BJP	Ram Swaroop Sharma	362,824	49.94	12.71
	INC	Pratibha Singh	3,22,968	44.46	16.25
	CPI(M)	Kushal Bhardwaj	13,965	1.92	New
	AAP	Jai Chand Thakur	9,359	1.29	New
	BSP	Lala Ram	5,167	0.71	New
	NOTA	None of the above	6,191	0.85	N/A
Majority			39,856	5.48	18.00
Turnout			7,26,094	63.12	11.33
	BJP gain from INC		Swing	10.77

2013 by-election

Bye-election, 2013: Mandi

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	INC	Pratibha Singh	353,492	60.71	12.89
	BJP	Jai Ram Thakur	2,16,765	37.23	8.63
	Independent	Subhash Mohan Snehi	6,057	1.04	New
	PRISM	Lawan Kumar	5,932	1.02	New
Majority			1,36,727	23.48	21.52
Turnout			5,82,249	51.80	12.29
	INC hold		Swing	12.89

2009 election

General Election, 2009: Mandi

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	INC	Virbhadra Singh	340,973	47.82	5.59
	BJP	Maheshwar Singh	3,26,976	45.85	2.38
	CPI(M)	Dr. Onkar Shad	20,664	2.89	New
	BSP	Lala Ram	10,131	1.42	0.12
	RWS	Hookam Chand Shastri	7,877	1.10	New
	Independent	Shan Mohammad	6,405	0.89	New
Majority			13,997	1.97	7.97
Turnout			7,13,026	64.09	1.18
	INC hold		Swing

2004 election

General Election, 2004: Mandi

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	INC	Pratibha Singh	357,623	53.41	16.30
	BJP	Maheshwar Singh	291,057	43.47	18.58
	BSP	Mohan Lal Sahni	8,671	1.30	New
	Independent	Shah Mohammad	8,076	1.21	New
	Independent	Kashmir Singh Guleria	4,125	0.62	New
Majority			66,566	9.94	15.00
Turnout			669,552	62.91	8.35
	INC gain from BJP		Swing

1999 election

General Election, 1999: Mandi

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	BJP	Maheshwar Singh	325,929	62.05	0.39
	INC	Kaul Singh	1,94,904	37.11	1.73
	NCP	Ravi Thakur	3,657	0.7	New
	Independent	Amar Nirgotra	750	0.14	0.07
Majority			1,31,025	24.94	2.22
Turnout			5,28,636	54.56
	BJP gain from INC		Swing

1998 election

General Election, 1998: Mandi

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	BJP	Maheshwar Singh	304,210	62.44	29.15
	INC	Pratibha Singh	1,72,378	35.38	27.06
		Sukh Ram	8,304	1.70
	SJP(R)	Dina Nath	1,265	0.26	New
	Independent	Amar Nirgotra	1,081	0.22	New
Majority			1,31,832	27.06	2.09
Turnout			4,90,660
	BJP gain from INC		Swing

See also

• List of constituencies of the Lok Sabha

References

31°42′N 76°54′E / 31.7°N 76.9°E / 31.7; 76.9