Filing his nomination from Gurgaon Lok Sabha constituency on Tuesday, Janata Jannayak Party (JJP) candidate Mahmood Khan said their fight against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was against the politics of caste and religion.

The social entrepreneur, who is a native of Mewat, equated this fight to a battle of justice versus injustice.

Addressing workers of both the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the JJP, which have combined their forces in Haryana to fight the Lok Sabha polls, Khan said the 2019 general elections were like the battle of Mahabharata, which was fought in 18 days—the number of days till Haryana votes in the sixth phase with the national Capital, New Delhi, on May 12.

He exhorted party workers to fight as a single unit and mobilise voters across the constituency against the national parties.

“We will create employment, bring together agencies which work for the people, the poor and promote entrepreneurship. We would serve the cause of the underprivileged and ensure that there is equal development in all areas,” said Khan at Vyapar Sadan before filing his nomination papers.

AAP district president Mahesh Yadav, who was present at the venue, assured Khan that both the AAP and the JJP workers would work hard to get him maximum votes.

“Under this government, the people are unhappy with lack of employment and farmers are in distress. The economy is suffering,” he said.

JJP district president Sube Singh Bohra said the workers in Mewat, Rewari and Gurugram districts are geared up and they will reach out to voters in every booth.

AAP spokesperson RS Rathee said that their alliance will only indulge in “issue-based politics”.

Tuesday also saw businessman Virender Rana, who got the mandate from INLD, file his nomination papers as the Lok Sabha candidate for Gurgaon.

The Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) workers and supporters gathered at Rana’s ancestral village Bajghera and then reconvened at Agarwal Dharamshala near Mor Chowk in the city.

Addressing party workers, Rana said that both, the Congress and the BJP, have failed the people of Gurugram as the city has poor infrastructure and lacks even basic amenities such as water, power and sewage infrastructure.

“Gurgaon has become the pollution capital and companies are shifting to other places and countries. But we will stop this and make this city and this region livable,” he said.

Speaking in Rana’s favour, INLD’s Firozepur Jhirka MLA Naseem Ahmed said, “People of Mewat only have faith in one party and that it is the INLD. “We will ensure that Rana gets maximum votes from Mewat,” Ahmed said.

First Published: Apr 24, 2019 02:52 IST