Himachal Pradesh: Two more Lahaul panchayats to boycott polls

MANALI: Agitating residents in the Keylong, district headquarters of Lahaul-Spiti district,agitated in front of the district commissioner office and threatened to boycott the elections. The agitating residents said they will boycott the elections as government has left them to die in difficult circumstances.After ten panchayats of pattan valley and two panchayats of Chandra valley of Lahaul had decided to boycott ensuing Lok Sabha elections, residents of two more panchayats of Chandra valley – Gondhla and Khangsar – have also threatened to boycott the elections. The residents blame roads are blocked with snow, telephone services are down and they have no helicopter service for two months. Residents blamed that both government and administration are ignoring them. Gondhla panchayat vice president Suraj Thakur said, “If government do not operate helicopter sortie to Gondhla helipad soon after weather turns favourable, we shall boycott elections.”