Chandigarh, March 22
A total of 300 candidates have filed nomination papers for the Lok Sabha elections in the state. Today was the last day to file nomination papers and the process was started on March 15.

Chief Electoral Officer Shrikant Walgad here today said a maximum of 47 candidates had filed nomination papers from the Hisar parliamentary constituency followed by 36 candidates from Kurukshetra and 33 from Karnal.

He said 32 candidates each had filed nominations from Bhiwani-Mahendergarh constituency and Faridabad seat, 29 from Sonepat, 27 from Gurgaon, 25 from Sirsa, 20 from Ambala and 19 from Rohtak parliamentary seat.

Walgad said 285 candidates had filed nomination papers during the 2009 polls whereas 231 candidates had filed nomination papers during the General Election in 2004.

He said the Returning Officers concerned would do the scrutiny of the nomination papers and the last date for withdrawal is March 26.

He said, “There are about 16,000 polling stations in the state, including nearly 3,000 sensitive and hypersensitive.” He said Micro Observers would be deputed on polling stations and web-casting or videography or still photography would be carried out for free and fair conduct of the polling. Also, 60 companies of the Central Reserve Police Force would be deputed at the polling stations.

Hisar, March 22
Krishna Singh, wife of Congress nominee from the Hisar Lok Sabha seat Sampat Singh, is way ahead of his politician husband when it comes to owning property.

While Sampat Singh has movable assets of Rs 53,459,12 and immovable property worth Rs 40,000,00, his wife has movable assets worth Rs 15,468,148 and immovable assets of Rs 37,857,400.

Sampat has taken loan of Rs 45,377,77 from the government, while his wife has liabilities worth Rs 52,962,24 towards banks and other financial institutions.

Karnal, March 22
BJP candidate Ashwini Kumar Chopra today filed his nomination from the Karnal seat. Party state president Ram Bilas Sharma and BJP leaders accompanied him, but local leaders of the Haryana Janhit Congress (HJC) kept themselves away from the nomination process.

Meanwhile, Teg Singh Takhana has also filed his nomination an independent candidate from the Karnal seat after quitting the HJC.

Teg Singh alleged that there was no respect for the party workers and HJC leaders imposed their decision on them.

“The BJP-HJC alliance is unbreakable. Nobody is annoyed with the candidate, if anybody, we will make them understand. The Modi wave will benefit us in the state and the BJP-HJC will repeat the history of 1999,” said the BJP president.

16 file nomination

Sixteen candidates today filed their nomination papers. As many as 33 candidates have filed nomination from the Karnal seat.

BJP candidate Ashwini Chopra’s wife filed her nomination as a covering candidate. Ashish (All India Forward Block Party) and Ajit Singh (Siromani Akali Dal) have also filed their papers. Dalpinder Singh filed his nomination as a covering candidate of Ajit Singh and Davinder Singh filed his papers from the Karamyogi party.

Hisar, March 22
Refuting the charges of regional discrimination in development being raked up by the INLD and the HJC, Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda said the Congress government carried out unprecedented development, but local MP Kuldeep Bishnoi as well as the previous INLD government had failed to fulfil the aspirations of the people in the region.

Addressing a gathering after Congress candidate Sampat Singh filed his nomination papers today, the Chief Minister said he had statistics to back his claims on development.

"During 1999-2004, the INLD government released Rs 826.48 crore for development works in nine Assembly segments of the Hisar Lok Sabha seat. But the Congress government has spent Rs 4,454.23 crore for development activities in the constituency which is more than five times the amount spent by the INLD," he said.

Hooda said HJC chief Bishnoi never raised the demand of the constituency in the parliament. He, however, gave credit to former Chief Minister Bansi Lal for putting the region on path of development. "The INLD and the HJC are in fact trying to keep the dynastic politics alive as three members of the Chautala family are already MLAs and now fourth is in the fray. Similarly, Kuldeep, too, fielded his brother Chander Mohan from Karnal, but had to withdraw him after public pressure," he alleged.

With his "mission unity" within the Congress, the Chief Minister succeeded in bringing together different factions in the Hisar Congress in support of the party nominee. Hooda along with Rajya Sabha MP Birender Singh reached the rally venue in the same car.

State Congress president Ashok Tanwar, Hisar MLA and Urban Local Bodies Minister Savitri Jindal, Hansi MLA Vinod Bhyana, Bawani Khera MLA Ram Kishan Fauji, Barwala MLA Ram Niwan Ghorela, Uklana MLA Naresh Selwal, who is close to Kumari Selja, Hisar district chief and former MP Jai Prakash, and former MLA Chhatarpal Singh vowed to work for the win of the Congress nominee.

Rohtak, March 22
Two-time Rohtak MP Deepender Singh Hooda, who is in the fray for the seat for the third consecutive time, today said the work done by him for his constituency during the past eight years would speak for itself.

Talking to mediapersons after filing his nomination papers here today, Deepender expressed his faith in electorate of the Rohtak Lok Sabha segment in view of his earnest efforts put in for all-around development during his successive tenures.

“I may not be able to campaign in these elections, but my party workers would take charge of the campaign. Development will be the key issue in my electoral campaign,” he said.

Speaking on the occasion, Deepender’s father and Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda said there was overwhelming support for the Congress in the state and it would come out with flying colours in the Lok Sabha poll.

Deepender’s mother Asha Hooda and wife Shweta also accompanied him for the filing of nomination papers. Congress MLAs Bharat Bhushan Batra, Anand Singh Dangi, Shakuntla Khatak and Dr Raghubir Kadyan were also present on the occasion.

Meanwhile, BJP candidate Om Prakash Dhankhar and Manoj Kumar of the BSP also submitted their nomination papers today.

CM Hooda, Asha and other family members of Deepender will begin canvassing for him in a few days. While Deepender’s mother Asha Hooda is looking after the campaign primarily in the urban segment, the Chief Minister will tour 30 big villages of the constituency.

Political pundits say, the Rohtak Lok Sabha seat is the safest seat for the ruling Congress from Haryana. Deepender had won the seat by huge margins in the 2005 and 2009 elections.

While the factor of wresting “chaudhar” for Rohtak --- the heartland of Deswali Jat belt in Haryana --- played a crucial role in the 2005 elections, the Central projects got sanctioned by the Hooda junior for his constituency during his tenure contributed a great deal towards his overwhelming victory in the 2009 Lok Sabha poll.

Having the formidable backing of the state regime headed by his father and the Union Government led by the Congress, the Rohtak MP succeeded in upgrading rail and road infrastructure and bringing several national and state-level medical, research and education institutes to his constituency. This, coupled with provision of quality civil and industrial infrastructure, strengthened his hold among the electors.

Over the years, Deepender has earned the reputation of being an apolitical politician and prefers to stay away from the blame-game. In fact, he excuses himself from responding to political questions during formal as well as informal media interactions.

“My focus is on future and not on politics…I have sincerely tried to do my best for my constituency during my successive terms, and will continue to do so if my electors entrust me with the job this time as well,” he said.

Faridabad, March 22
Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convener Arvind Kejriwal today sought support of the common man to root out the corrupt political system. He said it was only the AAP which could bring a change and free the country from the clutches of dishonest politicians. Kejriwal was here to take part in a road show in favour of party candidate Purshottam Dagar from the Faridabad seat.

“A group of youths attempted to show black flags as soon as Kejriwal entered the city in Sector-37, but the group thinned out before Kejriwal reached Sector-37 where he interacted with supporters,” said a spokesperson of the party. He alleged the incident was an attempt by disgruntled politicians and it had exposed their cheap tactics.

Kejriwal, who covered several areas of the constituency, addressed a gathering at Badkhal village, where he urged the voters to come out in support of the AAP if they wanted a change in the political system and the governance. He said the tall claims made by the BJP about the Gujarat model of development were false and misleading. He said both the BJP and the Congress were two faces of the same coin and the voters would have to understand their game plan.

About gas pricing, Kejriwal said it was a deep nexus between politicians and certain business houses that had resulted in acute inflation, price rise and corruption.

Chandigarh, March 22
The Election Commission (EC) has allowed the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) candidates to contest on its symbol “jhaadoo” from Haryana.

In a statement, state AAP chief spokesman Rajeev Godara said the EC had sent a communication to the Haryana Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) to allow the party candidates to contest on its symbol. The AAP had sent a representation to the EC to reserve "jhaadoo" for its candidates as it was a registered party.

The CEO had apprised the district electoral officers of the EC's decision, Godara added. Recently, a section of the media had reported that the AAP candidates would be treated as Independent candidates.

Sirsa, March 22
Opposition from Haryana Janhit Congress (HJC) supremo Kuldeep Bishnoi notwithstanding, the SAD (B) will campaign for the INLD candidates in the state in these parliamentary elections.

Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and Deputy Chief Sukhbir Singh Badal will campaign for the INLD candidates not only in Sirsa and Hisar, where Bishnoi’s HJC is contesting as an NDA partner, but also on those seats where the BJP has fielded its candidates.

NS Malhan, office secretary of the INLD, said Sukhbir Singh Badal would address three rallies on April 2 and 3 to cover five parliamentary seats in the state.

Badal Junior will address rallies at Ambala, Pehowa and Nissing on April 2. The next day, he will address rallies at Ratia in Fatehabad district and Odhan in Sirsa, both coming under the Sirsa parliamentary segments.

The INLD has fielded Charanjit Singh Rori, a sitting MLA of the SAD (B), on the Sirsa seat.

Malhan said Parkash Singh Badal would also campaign for the INLD candidates in Haryana, but the schedule was yet to be fixed.

INLD sources said some other leaders of the SAD (B) from Punjab could campaign for him despite their preoccupation in elections in Punjab.

Speaking to mediapersons at Sirsa yetserday, Kuldeep Bishnoi, while warning Sukhbir that his campaign for “tainted” Chautalas would prove suicidal for the SAD (B) and detrimental to the NDA agenda against corruption, had said that he had lodged his complaint with BJP president Rajnath Singh.

Sirsa, March 22
Former Deputy Chief Minister and Haryana Janhit Congress (HJC) supremo Kuldeep Bishnoi’s elder brother Chander Mohan and Ellenabad MLA Abhay Singh Chautala have engaged in a fresh war of words.

Chander Mohan, who was in Ellenabad today to open election office of his party’s candidate Sushil Indora, was reminded of his old political rivalry with Abhay when he 
was addressing a gathering in the latter’s Assembly segment. “When I was MLA from Panchkula, Abhay never tired of challenging me. Though I invited him to contest against me from Panchkula, he never contested against me. Today, I challenge Abhay to contest the next Assembly elections against me from Ellenabad,” Chander Mohan said.

Pooh-poohing Chander Mohan’s challenge, Abhay said if he was so keen to contest elections, he should have kept his ticket from Karnal intact, which his brother gave him. “He had seen the writing on the wall as the HJC was losing both seats and the INLD is going to win all 10 seats in Haryana this time,” Abhay said.

Earlier, Chander Mohan and Abhay, both scions of two top political families of Haryana, had entered into allegations and counter allegations during a bypoll for the Ratia assembly seat in December 2011.

Replying to Kuldeep Bishnoi’s statement during Ratia bypoll that his family had defeated the Chautala clan in elections on six occasions, Abhay had told Bishnoi not to speak high about his family as his elder brother had brought shame to the entire state by marrying Fiza after converting to Islam.

Furious at personal attacks, Chander Mohan had warned Abhay that those who lived in glass houses did not throw stones at others.

At that time, Chander Mohan had challenged Abhay to contest against him from Ellenabad. 

Kurukshetra, March 22
As many as 36 candidates have filed nomination papers from the Kurukshetra Lok Sabha seat.

Fifteen candidates today filed their papers before the Returning Officer. Karam Singh (Samajwadi Party), Ashwini Malhotra (All India TMC), Krishan Kumar (I), Rajkumar Saini (I), Jai Narayan (I), Kuldeep Singh (Republican Party of India (A)), Gurmeet Singh (Lok Dal), Anil Kumar (I), Devender Kumar (I), Rajbala (Rashtriya Bahujan Hitay Party), Randhir Singh (I), Baldev Singh Dahiya (I), Kiran Pal (Bhartiya Inqalab Party) and Balbir (I) filed their nomination papers. Aam Aadmi Party candidate Balbir Kaur again filed her papers. —TNS

Chandigarh, March 22
Less than a fortnight after the Punjab and Haryana High Court expressed its dissatisfaction with the nine-member committee constituted for looking into the shifting of ammunition dump at Gurgaon and Faridabad, the panel has been reconstituted.

As the case came up for resumed hearing before the Division Bench of Chief Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Justice Arun Palli, counsel for the Union of India Onkar Singh Batalvi placed the details of the committee reconstituted by the Cabinet Secretariat.

The six-member panel will now be headed by the Additional Secretary, Union Ministry of Urban Development, and has in it Gurgaon Municipal Commissioner Dr Praveen Kumar. His name was recommended by the High Court on the previous hearing.

The Bench, on the previous hearing, was critical of appointing a secretary-level officer from Haryana in the committee and had indicated the need for having an officer well-conversant with the area. Dr Praveen Kumar’s name was then recommended as the Bench felt the senior IAS was well-versed with the ground realities and the topography of the area.

Batalvi had earlier told the court that the committee was to be headed by an Additional Secretary in the Ministry of Defence. Two members were to be taken from the Department of Research and Development and another from the Defence Estate. Some of the other members were to be from the Department of Atomic Energy and the Union Ministry of Urban Development.

The Bench was of the view that the defence, with five members, had more than the requisite representation. The Bench also questioned the rationale behind appointing the chairman from the Ministry of Defence and the Cabinet Secretary’s move to consult the Defence Ministry. In any case, the Bench was of the view that nine members were more than the requirement.

The case will now come up on August 22 for further hearing.

The matter had reached the High Court after a public interest litigation was filed by Suersh Goyal of Faridabad. He was seeking the removal of constructions from the 100-m area around Air Force Station, Dabua, in Faridabad, as it was a protected zone under the provisions of the Work of Defence Act.

The High Court had also taken cognisance of a similar matter of construction activities within the restricted 900-metre zone in Gurgaon.

Narnaul, March 22
Three days after the stone-pelting incident that left Public Health Minister Kiran Choudhry injured, the Narnaul police claimed to have arrested three youths involved in the crime.

The youths, identified as Pradeep, Dinesh and Pradeep of Koriavaas village, were today produced before a local court, which sent them to judicial custody of 14 days.

Mahendragarh SP Jagat Singh Hooda, claimed that the accused had confessed to the crime during police interrogation and further probe was on to ascertain the exact reason behind the crime.

Kiran was injured when some persons pelted her with stones during campaigning at Choudhry Dharamshala in Koriyavaas village. She suffered injuries on the neck and chest in the attack and is undergoing treatment at a private hospital in Gurgaon.

The police had booked a case under the IPC against unidentified persons in this regard. In the last three days, the police had questioned over 20 people of the village.

Meanwhile, terming the incident as shameful and shocking, Daldeep Yadav, sarpanch of Koriavaas village, has announced social boycott of the accused if they are found guilty.

He said the incident had not only brought disgrace to the village, but also to all villagers across the state.

“We will call on Kiran Choudhry after her discharge from the hospital to apologise for the incident,” said Yadav.