The Himachal Pradesh Congress on Saturday expelled seven rebel leaders, news agency PTI reported citing a party statement. At the same time, Congress revoked the suspension of two senior leaders who were expelled in 2012 for anti-party activities. The expulsions come as Congress prepares for the upcoming Himachal Pradesh Assembly election, where it will look to foil an attempt by the Bharatiya Janata Party to topple the Virbhadra Singh government. According to PTI, the seven Congress leaders were expelled after their announced their decision to contest against the party's official candidates in the upcoming assembly polls. Other leaders expelled include Harish Janartha (Shimla), Hardeep Singh Baba (Nalagarh), Puran Chand Thakur (Drang), Beni Prasad (Lahaul) and Rajinder (Spiti).

Source: India Today October 29, 2017 02:50 UTC