‘Vote for party that fought for women’s rights’: Vinesh Phogat as she casts her vote

JULANA (Haryana): After casting her vote in the Haryana elections, Congress candidate from Julana Assembly Constituency Vinesh Phogat said today is a huge festival and it’s a very big day people of the state

On Saturday, Phogat arrived at a polling station in Charkhi Dadri to cast her vote. “It is a huge festival for Haryana and a very big day for the people of the state. I am making an appeal to the people of the state to come out and cast their votes. 10 years ago, when Bhupinder Hooda was the CM, the level of sports in the state was really good. It is not in my hands (to become a minister), it is in the hands of the high command…” Vinesh Phogat said.

“Vote for the party that works for rights of women, you all know which party I am speaking of. Hope of victory is always there, today is the day to vote. People have not forgotten what the BJP did to the farmers and others,” she added.

#WATCH | Congress candidate from Julana Assembly Constituency Vinesh Phogat arrives at a polling station in Charkhi Dadri to cast her vote for #HaryanaElelction

She says, “It is a huge festival for Haryana and a very big day for the people of the state. I am making an appeal to… pic.twitter.com/7LoYTR0Xvl

— ANI (@ANI) October 5, 2024

This election is a high-stakes battle as the BJP is eyeing a third straight term to power in the state, the Congress party is aiming to wrest back power riding on anti-incumbency, and issues of farmer protests and wrestler protests.

The key contesting parties in Haryana include the BJP, Congress, and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), as well as the pre-poll alliance between the Indian National Lok Dal-Bahujan Samaj Party (INLD-BSP) and the Jannayak Janta Party (JJP)-Azad Samaj Party (ASP).

Voting in Haryana will be held from 7 am to 6 pm. A total of 1,031 candidates are contesting in all 90 assembly constituencies, and 20,632 polling booths have been set up for voting. The results for the Haryana Assembly elections will be declared along with those of Jammu and Kashmir on October 8.

According to Haryana’s Chief Electoral Officer, Pankaj Agarwal, 2,03,54,350 voters, including 1,07,75,957 males, 95,77,926 females, and 467 third-gender voters, will cast their votes in the Assembly Elections on October 5. A total of 1,031 candidates are contesting across 90 constituencies, and 20,632 polling booths have been set up for the election.

The Chief Electoral Officer highlighted that a total of 29,462 police personnel, 21,196 home guards, and 10,403 Special Police Officers (SPO) have been deployed across the state. Strict surveillance will be maintained at every corner of the state to allow citizens to cast their votes without fear.

Manohar Lal Khattar served as the Chief Minister of Haryana for around 9.5 years. He was succeeded by Nayab Singh Saini in March this year. BJP is contesting the polls under his leadership. Saini is contesting from the Ladwa constituency.

One of the prominent faces in the elections is wrestler Vinesh Phogat. She joined the Congress party on September 6, along with Olympian wrestler Bajrang Punia, following her disqualification from the women’s 50 kg final at the Paris Olympics.

The JJP-ASP alliance will contest all 90 Assembly constituencies in Haryana, with the JJP fielding candidates in 70 seats and the ASP in 20.

In the 2019 Assembly elections, the BJP won 40 of the 90 seats, forming a coalition government with the JJP, which won 10 seats. The Congress secured 31 seats. However, JJP later broke out of the coalition. (ANI)