Chandigarh, Oct 5 (PTI) Even as Haryana went to vote, Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini on Saturday accused the Congress of following the policy of plundering the state by deceiving the electorate.
“Congress does the politics of ‘jhooth and loot’ and the people of Haryana have understood this. They have made up their minds to bring back the BJP in Haryana for a third time,” Saini told reporters on the day of the voting.
Congress has been regularly insulting the Dalit community and never made any scheme for the upliftment of Dalits, he said.
Saini, among the earlycomers, came to the booth with his wife Suman and cast his vote in his native village, Mirza, in Ambala district’s Naraingarh.
Voting for all 90 Assembly seats in Haryana, which began at 7 am, will conclude at 6 pm, while the counting of votes will be taken up on October 8.
Saini is contesting the polls from Ladwa in the Kurukshetra district.
Before he cast his vote, Saini prayed at Guru Ravidas temple and a gurdwara in his village.
“The mood of the people of Haryana is clear, the BJP is going to form a government for the third time with a big mandate,” Saini told reporters.
He claimed that the BJP’s “double-engine” government did excellent work in 10 years and the farmers who have been agitating on and off over minimum wage have been happy with his government’s policies.
Meanwhile, former Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar, who cast his vote in Karnal, claimed Congress is racked with infighting. “There is a pall of gloom in the Congress’ camp. It’s chaotic there.” Asked about BJP leader Ashok Tanwar returning to the Congress fold just two days before polls, Khattar said Tanwar has revived the “aaya ram gaya ram” politics.
Both parties insisted they were going to win the election and form their government.
Khattar claimed that the BJP will win more than 50 seats this year, improving from 47 in the 2014 state election.
Leader of Opposition Bhupinder Singh Hooda, who is seeking re-election from Garhi Sampla-Kiloi in Rohtak district, “There is a lot of enthusiasm among people and people have decided to oust them.” “BJP is on its way out while Congress is coming back to power,” Hooda, who cast his vote in Sanghi village, said.
Congress leader Kumari Selja said the people of Haryana had been waiting for the election to happen so that they could kick the incumbent out.
Asked if she would become the chief minister should the Congress win, Selja said, “The party will decide on the question after the result comes.” Congress leader and MP from Rohtak Deepender Singh Hooda expressed confidence that his party will form a government with a comfortable majority.
“BJP had last time (in 2019 assembly polls) claimed it would win 75-plus seats but they won only 40. Now Khattar is talking of getting 50 seats, you can imagine, how many seats they will end up with,” he said.
BJP leader Anil Vij, who recently presented himself as CM candidate, told reporters in Ambala Cantt that BJP was coming to power for a third term.
When asked that he had last month said he would stake a claim for the chief minister’s post if the party comes to power, said he has always dedicated himself to the party and never asked for anything.
“I have always obeyed my party’s orders, but I said if the party makes me a CM, I will change Haryana’s fate,” he said.
INLD’s Abhay Chautala, after casting a vote in Sirsa district, said neither the Congress nor BJP will get the majority. “INLD-BSP will come to power,” he said.
JJP leader Dushyant Chautala, whose party is contesting polls in alliance with the Azad Samaj Party, said he was sure the public would choose the alliance on the back of JJP’s work in the past.
“You have the power of democracy in your hands. Do not treat this day as a holiday and it is very important for you that you cast your votes in large numbers,” he also said.
He also said the party will win more than 10 seats it got in 2019.
Savitri Jindal, an Independent candidate from Hisar, said, “I will try to turn Hisar into a beautiful and developed place and will also ensure basic facilities.” Congress leader Randeep Singh’s Surjewala’s son Aditya Surjewala, contesting from Kaithal as Congress nominee, appealed to the people of the state to cast their votes in large numbers.
“Our connection with the place goes back to three generations. I want to serve Kaithal not for five but for the next 50 years,” he said. PTI SUN VN VN
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