The supporters of former chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda have been insisting to declare him party’s CM face for the 2019 Assembly polls. (Source: File Photo)THE RESULTS of Assembly polls in five states is being seen as a setback for the ruling BJP in Haryana where Assembly polls will be held in 2019.
However, the poll results will strengthen the hands of the Congress High Command which will now take a call on Haryana Chief Ministerial candidate “more confidently and without any pressure”. The supporters of former chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda have been insisting to declare him party’s CM face for the 2019 Assembly polls claiming that “his leadership can ensure party’s win in Haryana.”
However, Hooda told The Indian Express Tuesday, “Our first priority is formation of Congress government in Haryana.”
MLAs who support Hooda have even been demanding that Haryana Pradesh Congress Committee (HPCC) Ashok Tanwar be shifted for several months but the demand was not accepted yet. When asked over the issue today, Hooda said, “Congressmen from Haryana have already passed a resolution unanimously authorising party president Rahul Gandhi to take a call in this regard.”
On the results, the former Chief Minister said, “Its impact will be visible in civic body polls in Haryana in which the BJP will lose mayoral polls in all five towns.” “BJP has lost the poll battle in five states because of issues of farmers, GST, demonetization and unemployment. Congress has received support from all sections of the society especially farmers, small shopkeepers, traders and poor people,” said Hooda, who was one among the star campaigners of Congress in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattishgarh.
HPCC chief Ashok Tanwar has been stating that normally Congress doesn’t declare its CM face when the party is in opposition. However, on Tuesday, he preferred to avoid the query stating that BJP and INLD will lose the civic polls “even as Congress did not contest these elections on party symbol”. “Had the Congress contested MC polls on party symbol, the defeat of BJP and INLD would have been more visible,” said Tanwar. Hooda camp was not in favour of contesting the civic body polls on party symbol arguing that the party never contested these polls on party symbol.
On the other hand, Haryana BJP president Subhash Barala said, “We will be alert after the results of five states. We learn from every election. However, BJP will form the government in Haryana again as in each state, there are different circumstances.”
