3 min readChandigarhAug 5, 2014 11:26 AM IST
First published on: Aug 5, 2014 at 11:26 AM IST
Even as Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda is contemplating changing his constituency for the Assembly elections, the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) is in a quandary about securing seats for its senior leaders, who are in jail.
Hooda has hinted that he would like to contest from Indri. “I studied at Sainik School and have an emotional attachment with the area. It would be a privilege for me to contest from here, if the people want me to,” the CM said.
However, Hooda is the only applicant for his present Assembly constituency of Kiloi Garhi Sampla. So the buzz is that he may contest from two constituencies, as was the case of Om Prakash Chautala in the previous Assembly election.
Last time, Chautala contested from both Ellenabad and Uchana Kalan —- both in his native Lok Sabha constituency of Sirsa. He retained Uchana, where he defeated Congress veteran Birender Singh, and resigned from Ellenabad, paving the way for his son Abhay Chautala to fill the vacancy.
This time, the INLD has not declared candidates from Uchana Kalan and Dabwali, which is represented by Ajay Chautala.
All the men in the Chautala family, specifically the younger generation, have started sailing through the political waters after Om Prakash Chautala and his elder son Ajay were jailed for 10 years in the JBT recruitment scam. Ajay’s son Dushyant already represents Hisar Lok Sabha constituency.
The younger children are yet to attain the age to contest election. Abhay junior Karan Chautala, though, is already actively involved in state politics.
Now, Uchana and Dabwali pose a problem for the Chautalas. Sources said that though the leadership is hopeful that both Chautala and Ajay might get relief in court, they are considering family loyalists as alternative candidates from these constituencies. The INLD might have taken lead in declaring candidates in 62 seats, but the remaining 28 seats are the most problematic as there are intra-party struggles to grab them.
Even in the Congress, many senior leaders including state chief Ashok Tanwar, are trying to neutralise opposition in their own bastions.
Tanwar, who lost the Sirsa Lok Sabha seat to the INLD, is considering contesting the Assembly elections from a seat preferably in the same Lok Sabha constituency. He faces opposition within the party, as his Lok Sabha poll defeat has weakened his position.
Share
