Jannayak Janata Party leader Digvijay Singh Chautala, also one of the candidates for the Jind bypoll slated for January 28, termed it a “semi-final” to the Assembly elections due later this year, adding that the winner will certainly go to the “final” with an edge over the others.
Underlying the importance of the Jind by-election, Mr. Chautala said that it will serve as a mirror to the ruling party and the Opposition alike.
“For the ruling party it will mirror its performance over the past more than four years, and for the Opposition it will decided as to which party succeeded in raising the voice of the people all these years,” he added.
However, he downplayed that his party had high stakes in the Jind bypoll, saying that “every election is important for a political party and no one could afford to contest any election casually”. He added that every time a party contests an election the stakes are high but a loss does not mean the end of the road for it.
“There is never a last day in politics,” he said.
Speaking to The Hindu, the 29-year-old, who is contesting as an Independent since his party is yet to be formally registered, said his family had registered a thumping victory six out of nine times they had directly or indirectly sought a mandate from Jind and it had always been his great grandfather and late Deputy Prime Minister Chaudhary Devi Lal’s karambhoomi.
Mr. Chautala said he expected “the same love from the people of Jind” this time round and more so because it was an election for only 10 months and not five years. He said the people of Jind strongly resented the 10 years’ of Congress’ misrule and politics of regionalism, and the BJP’s “failure to ensure development in the area over the past four-and-a-half years”.
Mr. Chautala said he considered BJP candidate Krishan Middha his nearest rival as he belonged to the ruling party. The Jannayak Janata Party leader termed Congress candidate Randeep Singh Surjewala, who is the party’s communications chief, a “non-serious” candidate since he is already an MLA from Kaithal.
“If he wins in Jind the Kaithal seat will fall vacant, necessitating another bypoll. If he does not vacate Kaithal, another election will be imposed on the people of Jind. It will, therefore, be the biggest mistake on the part of the people to elect him from Jind,” Mr. Chautala said.
He said lack of basic infrastructure, including roads, power, water and sewage system, were the major electoral issues in Jind. “Drug abuse is a growing menace among the youth in Jind. It is, in fact, one of the most backward among the 22 districts in the State with a high crime rate,” said Mr. Chautala.