Congress Announces 32 Candidates for Haryana Assembly Polls, Includes Hooda, Phogat

GG News Bureau
New Delhi, 7th Sept. The Congress party on Friday released its first list of 32 candidates for the Haryana Assembly elections, featuring notable names such as former Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, state unit chief Udai Bhan, and wrestler Vinesh Phogat.

The announcement followed a Central Election Committee (CEC) meeting in Delhi attended by Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, former party chief Sonia Gandhi, General Secretary K.C. Venugopal, and Haryana AICC in-charge Deepak Babaria, among others.

The initial list included 31 candidates, with Balbir Singh from Israna (reserved for Scheduled Castes) added later. Singh is the current MLA for Israna, and the party has renominated all 28 existing MLAs. The list also includes Mewa Singh, who will contest from Ladwa against Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini, and five women candidates, including former state minister Geeta Bhukkal.

The Congress fielded Surender Panwar from Sonipat and Bharat Bhushan Batra from Rohtak, despite Panwar’s recent arrest by the Enforcement Directorate in a money-laundering case related to illegal mining. The party also included Jannayak Janta Party (JJP) rebel Ram Karan and Independent MLA Dharam Pal Gondar, who recently joined Congress.

Vinesh Phogat, an Olympian and prominent figure in the farmer protests, will contest from Julana. Phogat’s entry into politics follows her recent alignment with Congress, as she aims to leverage her prominence from the wrestlers’ protest.

The Congress is currently in seat-sharing negotiations with the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) for the Haryana elections, though progress appears limited with disagreements from within the party and skepticism about AAP’s influence in Haryana.

The Haryana Assembly elections are scheduled for October 5, with vote counting set for October 8.