Cong eyes minority votes in Gurgaon seat after INLD fields non-Muslim candidate

Gurgaon: The Congress is upbeat about its chances in the fight for Gurgaon Lok Sabha constituency, after INLD announced it won’t field a Muslim candidate for the seat. With former minister Capt Ajay Yadav of Congress pitted against BJP’s incumbent MP Rao Inderjit Singh, the seat is likely to see an epic Yadav vs Yadav tussle.
In an unusual move, INLD has fielded Virender Rana, over the claims of Zakir Hussain, their candidate in 2014, who had come second to Rao Inderjit. Mewat’s 5 lakh Muslim voters, spread across Nuh, Ferozepur Jhirkha, Punhana assembly constituencies, could be expected to prefer Congress over BJP in the absence of a Muslim candidate, giving Congress the edge.

Both Yadav leaders count the Ahirwal region — dominated by the Yadav community — as their stronghold. So urban voters of Gurgaon and rural voters of Muslim majority Mewat are likely to decide the outcome.

Speaking to TOI, Yadav said he is confident of defeating his BJP opponent, as the latter has made many promises to the people of Gurgaon that have been “proven false”. “There is no Modi wave this time. People have realised promises made by BJP and its candidates were just to misguide people and gain their votes,” he said.

Using social media to attack his rival, Yadav has been reminding BJP about promises it had made in the 2014 elections. He blamed Rao Inderjit for lack of development work. “Even after five years, Gurgaon university doesn’t have a campus, and is running from a temporary set-up. The defence university, which was announced in Binola village, is yet to be completed,” he said.

He also described Rao Inderjit’s recent claim, about setting up AIIMS in Rewari, as another false promise.

He further said Mewat will completely support Congress as the area’s people are aware of the saffron party’s communal politics.

Meanwhile, Rao Inderjit, in his public meetings in Gurgaon, has pitched his candidacy on several developmental projects completed in the constituency during the last five years. He claimed he’s sure people will vote BJP for the work done by the party’s representatives, that people of Haryana have witnessed positive change in the system, which is why they will ensure BJP wins all 10 parliamentary seats in Haryana.

He went on to claim what the BJP government has achieved in five years is many times that which was done by Congress in its 55-year rule. Talking about the state, he said people will have noticed the transparency brought in the recruitment system, reversing the corruption of past governments.

“In the past, south Haryana’s youth couldn’t get jobs, not because of lack of talent but due to deep-rooted corruption in the system,” he said.