As polling for the four Lok Sabha seats of Himachal Pradesh is almost a month away, the Ellerslie building -- housing the state secretariat -- wears a deserted look these days with none of the Ministers in the Jai Ram Thakur-led cabinet turning up.
Even 'lazy' bureaucrats and officials prefer to stay away most of the time, much to the disappointment of the public, who comes from faraway places daily to get their grievances redressed.
Octogenarian Durga Negi, who comes to meet the Chief Minister to get monetary assistance for her son's treatment, said: "I am coming daily to meet him but I am told by his staff that he is busy in election tours but he will come to office any day."