New Delhi: As Congress stepped up its
efforts to form government in Haryana, where assembly polls
threw up a fractured verdict, Union Minister Shelja met party
President Sonia Gandhi late this evening to discuss the
political situation in the state.
Emerging from the meeting, Shelja, considered a rival
of Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda in state politics,
said the party will form the next government in the state.
Asked who would be the next Chief Minister of Haryana,
she said, "the high command will decide".
To a query whether she was in the race for the top job
she said "names do float".
To a volley of questions about the arithmetic in the
90-member assembly and from where the Congress will get the
requisite support of 46 to get majority, she indicated the
Independents would support the Congress.
Hooda is also expected to meet Gandhi.
Women save day for Congress
With the ruling Congress falling short of majority, it was
women who saved the day for them and helped reach 40-figure
mark, with seven of them registering wins.
Haryana ministers Kiran Choudhry and Savitri Jindal
retained their Tosham and Hisar assembly segments by posting
emphatic wins.
Among other women from Congress to win the polls were
Sumita Singh(Karnal), Shankutala(Kalanaur-SC), Geeta Bhukkal
(Jhajjar-SC), Anita Yadav(Ateli) and Sharda Rathore
(Ballabgarh) out of 12 women who got party nominations.
The other women to win the polls were debutants Kavita
Jain of the BJP (Sonepat) and Saroj of INLD (Narnaund).
As many as 67 women had contested the October 13 assembly
polls, which was the second highest number in state's
electoral history so far.
Thirteen women candidates also ended up being first
runner-up in the polls. They are Charanjit Kaur of SAD (Ambala
City), Congress' Kailasho Saini (Ladwa), Meena Mandal
(Nilokheri-SC), Shakuntala Bhagwaria (Bawal-SC), Harsh Kumar
(Hathin), INLD's Bimla Kadian (Panipat Rural), Seema Devi
(Uklana-SC), Sheela Bhayan (Barwala), Kanta Devi (Jhajjar-SC),
BJP's Santosh Yadav (Ateli) and Seema Trikha (Badhkal), BSP's
Dayawati (Punhana) and former Chief Minister Bhajan Lal's wife
and HJC-BL candidate Jasma Devi (Nalwa).
In 2005 Assembly polls, 11 women candidates of the
Congress were among 13 to register win.
Luck fails to smile on defectors
Luck failed to smile on most of
defectors from Indian National Lok Dal(INLD) and BJP in
elections to the 90-member Haryana assembly, as only one of
them could taste victory.
Former Finance Minister Sampat Singh, who deserted INLD
to join the Congress, was the luckiest among defectors, as he
drubbed former Chief Minister Bhajan Lal's wife Jasma Devi
from Nalwa seat by over 10,000 votes.
Another INLD defector Sushil Kumar Indora and Kailasho
Saini who were given Congress nominations at the instance of
Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda turned out unlucky in the
battle of ballot.
Kailasho lost to INLD's Sher Singh Badshami from Ladwa by
a thin margin of 2,505 votes, whereas Indora tasted defeat at
the hands of Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) nominee Charanjeet
Singh Rori from Kalanwali by over 12,500 votes.
Ram Kumar Gautam, who remained critical of BJP leaders
for their possible support to Om Parkash Chautala's INLD, had
switched sides bagging Congress ticket.
However, the turncoat Gautam had to bite the dust, as he
was defeated by INLD's Saroj by a margin of 10,097 votes from
his traditional Narnaund seat.
Bureau Report
First Published: Thursday, October 22, 2009, 20:50