Perhaps taking a cue from UP Chief Minister Mayawati, Haryana CM Om Prakash Chautala on Wednesday hinted at registering cases against his predecessors, Bansi Lal and Bhajan Lal. According to an official release, Chautala said ‘‘acts of corruption committed during the the tenures of previous governments are being investigated in a systematic manner and the result of these investigations would be made public”, while speaking at meetings in Fatehabad district.Chautala, who is also the president of the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD), clarified that unlike Punjab CM Captain Amarinder Singh, he was “not in a hurry” and was, therefore, “getting cases of corruption investigated properly”. It is difficult to figure out whether Chautala, by talking of corruption cases, means business or is only positioning himself for the Fatehabad Assembly by-election, due next month, following the death of INLD MLA Lila Krishan. Since Haryana Congress president Bhajan Lal and Haryana Vikas Party (HVP) chief Bansi Lal are set to join the poll-battle, it is possible that Chautala may be planning to target his rivals purely for electoral purposes.He has indicated that he would go it alone, rather than joining hands with the BJP. The INLD leader, who is likely to field one of Lila Krishan’s sons, has dared Bhajan Lal to put up his son, Kuldeep Bishnoi, considering that his native village, Mohammadpur Rohi, is in the constituency. Knowing the hazards, Bhajan Lal is in no mood to oblige him. In fact, no Congress heavyweight is willing to jump in to the fray. Meanwhile, the HVP has decided to field Prehlad Singh.
