Will Bajrang Punia, Vinesh Phogat contest Haryana election? Photo with Rahul Gandhi creates buzz

Amid speculations that Bajrang Punia and Vinesh Phogat could contest the upcoming Haryana elections on a Congress ticket, the two wrestlers met former Congress president and Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday in Delhi.

The Congress put out a photograph of Gandhi with the two grapplers on its official X handle.

Although the Congress has remained tightlipped about whether Punia and Phogat could be fielded, AICC general secretary in-charge Haryana Deepak Babaria said that there would be clarity by Thursday.

During the Congress’s Central Election Committee (CEC) meeting held on Monday to discuss ticket allocation for the upcoming Haryana Assembly elections, Rahul Gandhi explored the possibility of contesting the elections as part of the INDIA alliance, ANI reported, citing sources.

Sources revealed that Rahul Gandhi emphasized the importance of ensuring that the alliance’s votes remain united. In response, former Haryana Chief Minister and Congress leader Bhupinder Singh Hooda reportedly stated that while they could offer 3-4 seats to AAP, the party’s demands exceeded that number, making an alliance challenging.

Additionally, sources indicated that Bhupinder Hooda is expected to contest from the Garhi Sampla Kiloi constituency, while state president Udaybhan will likely be fielded from the Hodal constituency. There was no discussion during the meeting on the potential candidacies of Vinesh Phogat, Rajya Sabha MPs Kumari Selja, and Randeep Surjewala.

The CEC meeting reviewed candidates for all 90 seats in Haryana, finalizing names for 49 of them, with the remaining 41 seats yet to be decided. AICC in-charge of Haryana, Deepak Babaria, stated that the party would soon release the full list of candidates.

“Discussion on 49 seats was taken up, and 34 of them have been declared. Fifteen seats have been sent for review. Out of the 34 cleared seats, 22 are MLA seats. The pending names will be cleared in the next 2-3 days. We will also clarify Vinesh Phogat’s candidature. The list will be out within two days,” Babaria said.

The meeting was chaired by Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, with Rahul Gandhi and other CEC members in attendance.

The Haryana Assembly elections are scheduled to take place in a single phase on October 5, with the counting of votes on October 8. The Election Commission of India (ECI) had earlier revised the polling date from October 1 to October 5 and moved the counting date for both Jammu and Kashmir and Haryana assemblies from October 4 to October 8.