News
Himachal Deputy Speaker Vinay Kumar Appointed New State Congress President
Vinay Kumar, a three-time MLA from Renuka in Sirmaur district, has resigned as Himachal Pradesh Assembly Deputy Speaker to take over as the new state Congress president, replacing Pratibha Singh. His appointment signals the party’s push to consolidate its significant Dalit voter base.
Vinay Kumar, the Deputy Speaker of the Himachal Pradesh Assembly, resigned from his post today after being appointed the new president of the Himachal Pradesh Congress Committee.
His predecessor, Pratibha Singh, had already completed her term as the state party chief.
A three-time MLA from the Renuka constituency in Sirmaur district, Vinay belongs to the reserved category. His elevation is seen as a strategic move by the Congress high command to consolidate its sizeable Dalit vote bank, which accounts for more than 25% of the state’s population.
Both the party leadership and Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu were keen on appointing a Dalit leader to head the state unit.
Earlier this month, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi conducted interviews with six shortlisted leaders for the role. The shortlisted names included Education Minister Rohit Thakur; former state Congress chief and Theog MLA Kuldeep Rathore; Vinay Kumar; Bhoranj MLA Suresh Kumar; Palampur MLA Ashish Butel; and Kasauli MLA Vinod Sultanpuri.
The party organisation in Himachal had been dissolved on November 6, 2025, including all state, district, block-level bodies and frontal organisations. With Vinay’s appointment, the Congress is expected to begin rebuilding and restructuring its organisational framework in the state.
