New Delhi: The Rajya Sabha polls have become a battle for prestige for Congress veterans like Ashok Gehlot and Bhupinder Singh Hooda, who are personally monitoring the polling process in Jaipur and Chandigarh respectively. If Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot ensures the victory of all the party nominees Randeep Surjewala, Mukul Wasnik and Pramod Tiwari, his position in the state politics will become stronger.
Gehlot faces a challenge from the camp of former deputy chief minister Sachin Pilot, who has been pressing for a leadership change ahead of the Rajasthan assembly polls in 2023. Taking no chances, Gehlot cast his vote for the Rajya Sabha polls in Jaipur this morning and is personally monitoring the process to ensure that all the valid votes go in favour of the Congress nominees.
The RS polls have become a challenge for Congress as the opposition BJP is supporting an independent candidate and media owner Subhash Chandra, who has claimed the support of eight Congress MLAs, including six former BSP MLAs, who had later joined the Congress. “The BJP’s act of supporting an independent and indulging in horse-trading has not been liked by their own leaders,” Gehlot said, adding “If the BJP had not supported the independent candidate, three Congress nominees and one BJP nominee would have got easily elected as both the parties have sufficient numbers.”
Gehlot claimed the support of 126 MLAs, three more than the numbers needed to ensure a smooth sail for the three Congress candidates. In a significant development, the six former BSP MLAs came, along with Gehlot and voted. As a precautionary measure, the state government banned internet services in the Amer area of Jaipur for 12 hours.
Read: Turncoat BSP MLAs cast their vote in RS polls in Rajasthan, voting underway for four seats
One of the candidates, Surjewala claimed that democracy and clean politics will win in Rajasthan. In neighbouring Haryana, former chief minister BS Hooda faces a similar situation. He recently convinced the party high command to replace former state unit chief Kumari Selja with his close aide Udai Bhan, which has practically made Hooda, a popular Jat leader, in charge of the entire state.
This had miffed Adampur MLA Kuldeep Bishnoi, who, too, had been assured of a key post in the state unit to tap the non-Jat votes in Haryana. Bishnoi, who claimed that he would vote as per his conscience, could impact the chances of Congress Rajya Sabha nominee in Haryana Ajay Maken though Hooda has claimed the support of 31 MLAs, one more than the required number for the contest.
To ensure the MLAs remained safe, they had been shifted to a hotel in Raipur a few days ago and were taken to Chandigarh on Friday morning under the watch of Deepender Hooda, son of BS Hooda and the party’s Rajya Sabha member from Haryana.“We will get more votes than needed,” claimed Deepender. Besides Hooda, Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel was also monitoring the polling in Chandigarh. On Thursday, Baghel met Bishnoi in Chandigarh to bring him on board.
Read: RS polls: Haryana BJP-JJP MLAs moved to resort in Chandigarh
If Maken wins, BS Hooda’s position in the Haryana Congress will certainly get a boost against the rival camps of Kuldeep Bishnoi and Kiran Chaudhary. In Maharashtra, Congress nominee Imran Pratapgarhi received a boost with the AIMIM announcing support of its two MLAs. Imran is safe, said party insiders, adding that in Karnataka, Congress nominee Jairam Ramesh was also safe though JD-S had been asking the grand old party to cast its extra votes in favour of the former ally’s candidate.
