Addressing the first election rally in Himachal's Mandi, the Prime Minister cropped up the issue of defence deals during the Congress regime at the Centre and said that the party always "wanted a commission" in every deal which led to the delay in the procurement of weapons for the forces
Negi passed away Saturday morning at his native place in Himachal Pradesh's Kalpa, days after he cast his last vote in the 14th Assembly elections of the state.
The polling for the by-polls will take place on December 5 and the votes will be counted on December 8, coinciding with the result dates of the Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh Assembly elections.
Thakur said that Congress's attitude towards development was always of 'stifling and hanging'. Congress has always put obstacles to stop the development of Himachal.
After Congress attacks the Election Commission of India (ECI) for separately announcing the dates of the Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh polls, BJP leader Syed Shahnawaz Hussain said that the grand old party had started making excuses to deny defeat even before the elections.