Bjp-backed Independent new challenge for Maken
NEW DELHI: What looked like an easy win for the Congress in one Rajya Sabha seat in Haryana is now looking like anything but. HT learns that there may be significant cross-voting in the Haryana poll with media owner Kartikeya Sharma filing his nomination at the last minute.
Sharma, 41, is the managing director of ITV Network which runs news channel Newsx. He’s the son of former Congressman Venod Sharma.
Venod Sharma was a senior member of the Haryana Unit of the Congress till 1999 when his son, Manu, was jailed for killing Delhi model Jessica Lal at a bar. Venod Sharma now has his own Jan Chetna Party but retains close ties with several Congress leaders. That may just queer the pitch for Congress nominee Ajay Maken.
“There is expected to be significant cross-voting in this election,” said a former Congress leader.
To win a Rajya Sabha seat in the state, a candidate needs to get at least 31 votes and the Congress has the numbers. However, no one is counting on Kuldeep Bishnoi, who has been sulking for some time, especially with Bhupinder Hooda being given full control of the party ahead of polls in 2024.
Kartikeya Sharma’s father-inlaw, Kuldeep Sharma was a Congress MLA in the state till 2019, when he was denied a ticket. This means that the Independent candidate may have many Congress connections that could influence the verdict and spoil Maken’s run.
The candidature of Sharma is certain to refresh bad memories from 2016 for the Congress. At that time, many Congress MLAS were disqualified because of the mysterious use of a strange ink for voting, giving an easy win to another Independent, Subhash Chandra.
Neither Kartikeya Sharma nor Ajay Maken responded to HT’S queries, but, Congress seems very confident because it has become a prestige battle for Hooda.
Spokesperson Ved Prakash Vidrohi said, “I am confident that the Congress will win this election. We not only have 31 votes but we also have support of some Independents....’’