Ellenabad assembly bypoll: Another test awaits ruling BJP-JJP alliance CONGRESS WILL WIN ELLENABAD BYPOLL: SELJA

Polling will be held on Oct 30 and result will be out on Nov 2

CHANDIGARH: The upcoming Ellenabad assembly byelection, scheduled in October, will yet again test the standing of the ruling BJP-JJP combine in Haryana, particularly in the wake of the ongoing farmers protest against the three central agri-marketing laws.

The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Tuesday announced October 30 as the polling day for Ellenabad assembly bypoll.

The assembly seat situated in Sirsa district and bordering Rajasthan had fallen vacant in January after the lone Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) MLA Abhay Chautala had resigned in protest of the three central laws.

The ruling alliance had tasted defeat by over 10,000 votes last

November when they lost to the Congress in Baroda assembly byelection, a predominantly rural seat like Ellenabad.

The Baroda assembly seat, which had fallen vacant due to the demise of the Congress MLA, was retained by the Congress primarily due to the sway of former chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda and the resentment among the farming community due to enactment of three central agri-marketing laws.

Political analysts said since the BJP-JJP leaders are facing stiff opposition from the farmers, it will be quite difficult for them to effectively canvass and reach out to the electorate.

While the ruling alliance will

put up a joint candidate, it remains to be seen whether the contestant will be from the BJP or the JJP stable. Analysts said that the ruling party or the alliance generally have an upper hand in the by elections. The BJP-JJP government which have three more years of rule would try to work this factor to their advantage.

“Sirsa happens to be the home turf of Chautalas. But JJP leadership and deputy chief minister, Dushyant Chautala have consistently faced protests there. Things won’t be easy for the ruling alliance,” said an expert.

Prof Ashutosh Kumar, who teaches political science at Panjab University, Chandigarh, says the assembly by election is much more important for the JJP.

“Keeping in view the internecine war between the INLD and its offshoot, the JJP, this would be a litmus test for the JJP on their home ground,” Prof Kumar said.

The BJP, which finished runners-up in Ellenabad 2019 assembly elections, getting 29.95% vote share too would be under pressure to perform well, experts said.

Pawan Beniwal, a Jat leader who got BJP about 45,000 votes (of the 1.50 lakh votes polled) in 2019 assembly polls, has quit the saffron party earlier this year expressing solidarity with the protesting farmers.

He recently joined the Congress.

Following the imposition of model code of conduct, the EC ordered that no fresh release of funds under the MPLAD or MLA local area development will be made in the part of Sirsa where the Ellenabad assembly constituency is situated till the election process gets over.

AMBALA: After the Election Commission of India announced bypoll in the Ellenabad constituency, Haryana Congress president Kumari Selja on Tuesday said the party will win the election. “Congress will definitely contest the bypoll and win it. We will announce the candidate after a party meeting,” she told the media in Yamunanagar after a ‘Mahila panchayat’ organised by the party’s women cell.

Selja said the party is still going strong in Punjab and will win in the assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh as well. “Congress is in a good position in Punjab. We will see a repeat of Congress government there. Other parties only gave slogans of empowering the Scheduled Castes, but Congress actually did it,” she added.