Senior Congress leader Bhupinder Singh Hooda addresses a rally in Samalkha, Panipat, Sunday. (Express Photo) Senior Congress leader Bhupinder Singh Hooda addresses a rally in Samalkha, Panipat, Sunday. (Express Photo)

FORMER HARYANA chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda Sunday held a show of strength rally at Samalkha town of Panipat district while launching second leg of his Jankranti Yatra.

His son and Rohtak MP Deepender Hooda said, “The poll bugle has been sounded today,” adding that Haryana polls may be held in the next seven-eight months along with the Lok Sabha polls.

“Khattar sahab to kehte hain ki saath me sayad Vidhan Sabha ke chunav na ho… Par mujhe vishwas hai ki inme itna dam nahi ki apne dam par akele chunav kara le. Lok Sabha ke saath hi ye chunav karayenge (Mr Khattar says Assembly elections will probably not be held with Lok Sabha polls. But I believe that they don’t have the guts to hold the (Assembly) elections separately. They will get Vidhan Sabha polls held with Lok Sabha elections,” said Deepender amid cheers from the crowd.

Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar has been insisting that the Assembly polls would be held on time (October, 2019) but he has also held roadshows in many towns of the state recently, charging up the political atmosphere in the state while the main opposition party in the state, Indian National Lok Dal (INLD), has launched a jail bharo agitation on the issue of SYL canal.

Bhupinder Singh Hooda reached the rally venue to a grand welcome by his supporters.

The rally was organised in Panipat district to woo voters in the GT Road belt, which has two dozen Vidhan Sadha seats. It was also aimed to show that Hooda’s strong support base is not limited to Rohtak, Jhajjar and Sonepat district. A Congress MLA, Jai Tirath Dahiya, who had won the Assembly poll from Rai constituency with a margin of just three votes, said today’s rally shows who is capable of forming the government in Haryana. “The (Congress) High Command should change the leadership or they will repent later,” said Dahiya.

A farmer, Satpal Sharma, 50, who came to the rally, said, “We want to see Hooda as CM again as we were getting full electricity for our farms during his regime. But now prices of petrol, diesel and fertilisers are skyrocketing.”

Addressing his supporters from a specially prepared vehicle for the Jankranti Yatra, Hooda lauded them for joining the Yatra “in such large numbers despite the scorching heat”. “I salute the spirit that you have shown and assure you that your sacrifices will not go in vain,” he added.

Referring to the ‘Kurki’ notices to farmers who have failed to return their loans, the former CM cautioned the government against auctioning the land of the farmers. “The government should, not even for a minute, think that the farmers are orphans. I and the entire Congress party stand with the farmers and we will not allow the government to auction even an inch of farmers’ land,” he said.

Hooda took on the state government for its alleged shoddy treatment of sportspersons, who bring glory to the country in the international sporting arena.

“We brought in a scheme to harness the potential of our sportsperson and made Haryana a sporting powerhouse as medal winners were honoured and rewarded for their achievements. Far from honouring them, the present government is insulting them,” he said while addressing the rally at Samalkha’s New Anaj Mandi.

Hooda took on the state government over the alleged deteriorating law and order situation in the state and said a state that was considered one of the safest in the country, had now become the “preferred operating ground for criminals”.

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