Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Friday won the bypoll to the Champawat assembly seat defeating Congress' Nirmala Gahtori by a record margin of over 55,000 votes to retain his office.
Bypoll to the Champawat assembly seat was held on May 31, with over 64 per cent of the electorate casting their votes.
Dhami garnered 58,258 votes against Gahtori's 3,233 votes, winning by a record margin of 55,025 votes, election officials in Champawat said.
Gahtori lost her deposit, they said.
Dhami had to contest the bypoll to become a member of the assembly, a constitutional requirement he needed to fulfil to remain chief minister after losing from Khatima in the state polls held in February.
Though chief ministers of Uttarakhand who contested bypolls never lost, this is the highest margin with which a chief minister has won a by-election in the hill state.
Dhami has rewritten the record of Vijay Bahuguna who had won a bypoll from Sitarganj on a Congress ticket in 2012 by 40,000 votes.
Soon after his victory, Dhami visited the temple of Goljyu Devta along with his wife Geeta to offer prayers and held a roadshow through the main market of Champawat to thank the people for voting overwhelmingly in favour of him.
Former Champawat MLA Kailash Gahtori, who vacated the seat for Dhami, and Almora MP Ajay Tamta also accompanied the chief minister during the roadshow.
Dhami said he is indebted to the people of the constituency and will be at their beck and call.
He promised to develop Champawat into a smart city, ropeway connectivity to Hingla Devi temple and opening a campus of Sovan Singh Jeena University in Champawat.
Earlier in a statement Dhami credited the people of Champawat for his historic victory, saying it was a triumph of their trust.
'This victory is a command for me to dedicate myself fully to the service of the people of the state.
'I also express my gratitude to our prime minister whose constant guidance has made me worthy of the people's love and blessings,' Dhami said in the statement soon after the bypoll result was declared.
Dhami said 'people's trust has won'.
Celebrations began at the BJP state office as Dhami appeared headed for a one-sided victory, taking a substantial lead in the very first rounds of counting of votes.
"It is a national record. Our chief minister has garnered 93 per cent of the votes cast," Uttarakhand BJP spokesperson Shadab Shams said.
Dhami had lost to Bhuvan Chandra Kapri of the Congress in Khatima, a seat he had won in 2012 and 2017 assembly polls.
Soon after Dhami was sworn in as chief minister for a second consecutive term, the then Champawat MLA Kailash Chandra Gehtori had offered to vacate his seat to make way for him to contest from there.
Gehtori resigned from the seat on April 21, paving the way for Dhami to contest from there. Gehtori also accompanied him on all his campaign tours and roadshows in the run-up to the by-election.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and Union minister Jyotiraditya Scindia were among the first to congratulate Dhami on his victory.
Modi tweeted, 'Congratulations to Uttarakhand's dynamic CM Pushkar Singh Dhami for the record win from Champawat.'
'I am confident he will work even harder for the progress of Uttarakhand. I thank the people of Champawat for placing their faith in BJP and laud our Karyakartas for their hardwork,' the prime minister said.
Congratulating Dhami on his 'historic victory', Adityanath in a tweet said, 'This victory is dedicated to the prime minister's policies meant for the welfare of people, your development oriented leadership and the hard work of party workers.'
In a tweet, Scindia wished that the victory journey of Uttarakhand under Dhami's leadership and the guidance of Prime Minister Modi continues relentlessly.
'The victory is a stamp of approval on the development work being done by you under the guidance of Prime minister Narendra Modi,' Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Chouhan said.
Congratulating Dhami for his historic victory, Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur in a press note said he is doing commendable work for the progress of Uttarakhand under the guidance of Prime Minister Modi.
Thakur expressed hope that 'Uttarakhand would progress by leaps and bounds in coming years under Dhami's visionary leadership'.
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma congratulated Dhami for getting a 'massive mandate' in Champawat.
'This victory is dedicated to people's abiding trust in the principles and politics of BJP guided by the vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi,' he said.
