BJP releases second list of 21 candidates, pits Capt Bairagi against Vinesh Phogat

Chandigarh: The BJP on Tuesday released a second list of 21 candidates, including two Muslims, for the Haryana Assembly elections slated on October 5, clearing 88 candidates for the total 90 seats.

The party has pitted Capt Yogesh Bairagi, who is the state Vice President of the BJP's youth wing and Co-Convenor of Haryana Sports Cell, as per his social media profiles, against Olympian and Congress candidate Vinesh Phogat in Julana.

Krishna Gahlawat has been fielded from Rai, Bimla Chaudhary from Pataudi, and Pradeep Sangwan from the Baroda assembly seat. Naseem Ahmed has been named from Ferozepur Jhirka and Aizaz Khan from Punahana. The surprising name is Sanjay Singh from Nuh.

The BJP has also changed the candidate for the Pehowa seat. Earlier, the party had given the ticket to Kanwaljit Singh Ajarana. Due to opposition, he declined to contest. Now the party has made Jai Bhagwan Sharma the candidate.

Earlier, the BJP had released its first of 67 candidates list, fielding Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini from the Ladwa constituency and senior party leader Anil Vij from the Ambala Cantt seat. The BJP changed the constituency of Chief Minister Saini as he currently represents the Karnal Assembly seat, which he won in a bypoll in June.

Saini on Tuesday filed his nomination papers from the Ladwa Assembly constituency in Kurukshetra district. Accompanied by his wife Suman Saini, Union Minister Manohar Lal Khattar and Kurukshetra MP Naveen Jindal, Saini held a roadshow before filing the papers. On the wheel of a tractor, in an attempt to woo the influential Jats community, during the roadshow, a confident Saini told the media that “voters have made up their minds to elect the BJP government for the third time”.

During the electioneering, Saini, who is leading it by travelling far and wide across the state, is listing out measures taken by the BJP government to compensate the farmers, the Dalits and the poor.

Countering the Congress’ ‘Haryana Maange Hisab’ campaign, he accused the opposition of spreading lies.

Political observers say the ruling BJP, which is confident of its return to power with a majority for the third-consecutive term under the leadership of first-time Chief Minister and Other Backward Class (OBC) leader Saini, has been facing anti-incumbency and farmers’ anger. The BJP’s main rival, the Congress, which ruled the state for a decade till 2014, has an edge over it with the support of farmers, traders and government employees. Senior Congress leader and two-time Chief Minister Bhupinder Hooda is working hard to return to power amid the party’s internal ‘war of supremacy’.

Even the AAP has launched its campaign by targeting the BJP government over the issues of unemployment, law and order and the Agnipath scheme. Contesting solo on all seats, the party launched the ‘Kejriwal Ki 5 Guarantee’ campaign, promising free electricity, free medical treatment, free education, Rs 1,000 per month to every woman and employment for the youth.