The counting for votes for the bypoll to Haryana's Baroda assembly seat has begun amid tight security arrangements. The counting is being conducted in Sonipat's Mohana. With 14 candidates in fray, the Baroda assembly seat had recorded an overall turnout of 68.57 per cent in voting conducted on November 3. While the Congress hopes to retain the crucial seat, the exit polls on Saturday predicted a BJP dominance. Baroda seat has conventionally been a Congress stronghold. In fact, Congress' Krishan Hooda had won the seat in three consecutive terms in 2009, 2014 and 2019.
The Baroda assembly seat fell vacant in April following Hooda's death. The Baroda bypoll was seen as a direct contest between the ruling BJP and the Congress.
As Baroda braces for the counting, here are some important highlights of the bypolls:
-The BJP fielded Olympian wrestler Yogeshwar Dutt, who had lost the 2019 assembly poll by about 4,800 votes to Congress candidate Shri Krishan Hooda.
-Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar and Deputy CM Dushyant Chauatla had canvassed for Dutt while highlighting his achievements in wrestling.
-The Congress nominated former Sonipat zila parishad member Indu Raj Narwal and INLD's candidate is Joginder Malik.
Seven independents and four candidates belonging to other parties, including former Kurukshetra MP Raj Kumar Saini, who heads the Loktantra Suraksha Party, are in the fray from the constituency.
-The Baroda bypolls are a battle of prestige for former chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda as this Jat-dominated constituency lies adjacent to his own Garhi-Sampla Kiloi seat in Rohtak and is considered his stronghold.
-Baroda was a reserved seat till 2005 and a pocket borough of the INLD before the Congress won it thrice since 2009.
-The BJP had won 40 of the 90 assembly seats in 2019 and later formed the government with the JJP's support, which had won 10 seats in the last assembly elections.
-A win in Baroda will take the saffron party's tally to 41, while if the Congress wins, its tally will remain unchanged at 31. The INLD's strength will rise to two if they win the seat.
- Here is the full list of candidates contesting from Baroda constituency: Yogeshwar Dutt (Bharatiya Janata Party), Sonu Chopra (Bhartiya Janraj Party), Indu Raj (Indian National Congress), Kamaljeet (Independent), Gulshan (Independent), Parveen Kumar (Independent), Ramphal Sharma (Independent), Shakti Singh Hooda (Independent), Sant Dharamveer Chotivala (Independent), Saroj Bala (Independent), Joginder Singh Malik (Indian National Lok Dal), Rajkumar Saini (Loktanter Suraksha Party), Sumit Chaudhary (Peoples Party of India (Democratic)), Inder Singh (Rashtriya Mazdoor Ekta Party).