Rohtak, April 6
Outspoken AAP leader Kumar Vishwas, who is the party nominee from Amethi. has stated that he does not need the support of AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal or any other leader for his poll campaign.

Vishwas committed this faux pas during a press conference organised on the sidelines of a meeting of AAP workers here today.

“Kumar Vishwas is not a worker who requires the backing of many leaders for his canvassing,” the AAP leader said. He was replying to a question whether Kejriwal would be coming to campaign for him in Amethi.

He, however, clarified later that Kejriwal was slated to visit Amethi.

The AAP leader even projected Naveen Jaihind, the party’s Lok Sabha nominee from Rohtak, as the state’s next Chief Minister.

In response to another query, Vishwas also stated that people had to decide on the stance adopted by Kejriwal’s guru and social reformist Anna Hazare, who had decided to support Mamata Banerjee.

Reacting sharply on the comments of Yoga Guru Baba Ramdev’s offer to mediate between AAP and the BJP, Vishwas said it seemed that Ramdev was trying too hard to project himself as a political middleman.

It may be pertinent to mention here that Ramdev recently had claimed that AAP had lost its way on issues and looking for chances to merge with the saffron party. He had offered to mediate between the the two parties.

The AAP leader also led a roadshow in favour of Rohtak candidate Naveen Jaihind here today. He claimed that the party was getting an overwhelming response. Vishwas, however, preferred to remain non-committal on the prospects of AAP in Haryana.

“The question is not about how many seats our party can win, the point is to awaken people against rampant corruption and lavish lifestyle lived by Congress and BJP politicians while people lack basic amenities,” he maintained.

Training his guns on Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda and Congress Rohtak Lok Sabha nominee Deepender Singh Hooda, he said though Deepender had a powerful backing, the AAP candidate, who was the son of a small-time farmer, was receiving a huge response, which, he maintained, was a sign of change.

Jhajjar, April 6
The Lok Sabha elections will be a litmus test for Congress MLAs, especially in the Rohtak parliamentary constituency, which is the only Lok Sabha seat in the state where sitting MLAs of all Assembly segments are from the Congress.

The challenging situation for the MLAs has emerged following the spinal disorder of the outgoing MP and Congress nominee from here, Deepender Singh Hooda, who has been bed-ridden for over last 50 days and has not been able to canvass.

In his absence, his mother Asha Hooda and father Bhupinder Singh Hooda have been canvassing for him ever since the declaration of the poll dates. Moreover, all MLAs of the Rohtak Lok Sabha seat have also been roped in to seek votes for him.

The Rohtak parliamentary constituency comprises nine Assembly segments- Rohtak, Kalanaur, Garhi-Sampla Kiloi and Meham (all in Rohtak), Jhajjar, Badli, Bahadurgarh and Beri (all in Jhajjar), Kosli (Rewari)-- and all segments are being represented by Congress MLAs.

For this reason, the elections are being viewed a challenge for the MLAs, most of whom are facing resentment of people in their areas due to their “failure” in satisfying them. The prevailing condition may adversely affect Deepender's poll prospectus, who romped home with a record margin of 4,45,618 votes in the last Lok Sabha elections.

“Kosli, Badli, Beri, Bahadurgarh, Rohtak and Meham are the assembly segments where people are apparently not satisfied with the functioning of their sitting MLAs for different reasons. However, they appreciate Deepender’s efforts to ensure the overall development of their area,” opined political analysts. They said the Hooda family would have to put in extra efforts in these Assembly segments to keep up with the last performance.

Sources in the Congress said Chief Minister Bhupinder Hooda and his son are aware of this fact. That’s why, they have assigned a parallel task to their kin for campaigning along with the MLAs.

Deepender's absence from campaigning has given some of the overconfident MLAs a chance to take the elections as easy as they took last time. As a consequence, they are refraining from putting in serious efforts to win. Therefore, Hooda has decided to stay in his stronghold in the last two days of campaigning to carry out damage control exercises, added the sources.

Jhajjar, April 6
Two activists of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) reportedly manhandled each other in the presence of senior leader Kumar Vishwas at Bahadurgarh town in the district today.

Vishwas had to intervene to pacify the activists.

The incident took place when Vishwas reached Bahadurgarh to address an election meeting organised by the local AAP unit in favour of part candidate.

Party activists Mahabir and Shamsher reportedly engaged in a verbal duel over some personal issue. The duel turned violent when both of them started manhandling each other.

Anil, president of the local unit of AAP, said he had apprised the party convener of the incident. 

Hisar, April 6
District Congress (Urban) president Ved Rawal was assaulted during his door-to-door campaigning for Congress nominee Sampat Singh here today. Rawal went to Aath Marla Colony with councillor Mahender Juneja, Tara Chand Aneja and other party workers when a youth waylaid them and started talking in an abusive manner.

He caught hold of Rawal and hit him on the face. When Juneja tried to stop him, the youth manhandled him.

He threatened them and fled. People of nearby areas gathered on the spot and tried to catch him.

Sampat Singh said the youth seemed to be a member of a rival political party who was annoyed with the Congress. "I have urged the police to look into the matter and take appropriate action," he said.

"Opposition parties are resorting to such tactics to intimidate Congress members. A similar incident concerning Uklana MLA Naresh Selwal took place at a village recently. I urged party workers not to retaliate and campaign peacefully," he said.

Police spokesperson Harish Bhardwaj said the Civil Lines SHO was investigating the case and appropriate action would be taken.

"The police have been recording the statement of the victim. Further action will be taken after completing the initial probe into the incident," he said.

Rania (Sirsa), April 6
It's four o' clock in the evening and the crowd assembled at the Indian National Lok Dal nominee Charanjit Singh Rori’s election rally start raising slogans “Tau Devi Lal amar rahe” and “Chaudhary Abhay Singh Chautala zindabad” as they notice a helicopter hovering in the sky.

Soon, the noise of slogans becomes shriller, as Ellenabad MLA Abhay Chautala appears on the stage. A worker holding the mike announces that the “second nyaya yudh ke yodha (warrior of the second war for justice) has arrived as Chautala waves towards the crowd who responds with loud cheers. The INLD, which is fighting this election in Haryana with its back against the wall with its two tallest leaders Om Prakash Chautala and Ajay Chautala in jail serving imprisonment in the JBT Teachers’ recruitment case and the BJP showing no interest to align with the party despite all efforts by Chautala clan’s family friend Parkash Singh Badal.

The party leaders have been telling people that the “release” of their jailed leaders will depend on the outcome of this poll.

Abhay Singh’s grandfather Chaudhary Devi Lal fought the first “Nyaya yudh” in Haryana before 1987 assembly polls and came to power with a thumping majority of 85 out of 90 seats. Devi Lal had named his political fight against jeopardisation of the interests of Haryana in the famous Rajiv–Longowal accord as a “Nyaya yudh”.

Along with Mangal Sen, the tallest leader the BJP has ever had in Haryana, Devi Lal launched a statewide campaign and people supported his drive wholeheartedly. However, this time the conditions are completely different. The party is seeking justice from the people for their jailed leaders terming their sentencing as a conspiracy of Congress government led by Bhupinder Singh Hooda in Haryana.

Abhay Chautala, the eldest member of the Chautala clan after sentencing of his father and elder brother, has been burdened with a responsibility of leading the party to victory. His nephew Dushyant Singh Chautala’s candidature from the Hisar parliamentary segment has further depleted manpower at Abhay Singh’s disposal as many key activists of the party from across Haryana, particularly from Chautalas home district Sirsa, are busy campaigning for the scion of the clan.

Known for always arriving late in his meetings before the sentencing, Abhay Singh Chautala has now become punctual and shuttling from one assembly segment to the other on chartered helicopters addressing six election rallies in a day.

The INLD has not been able to win any parliamentary seat in Haryana after 1999 parliamentary polls, when going to polls with the BJP; the INLD-BJP alliance swept the polls completely.

The party drew a blank in parliamentary polls held in 2004 as well as 2009.

Also, the party is yet to win a parliamentary seat since Devi Lal’s death in 2001.

This election, the INLD activists know, is crucial for the party, as a good performance can win the party alliance with the BJP before assembly polls due in October, but a performance like 2004 and 2009 can demoralise its workers, who did not allow their morale to vacillate despite sentencing 15 months back.

Jind, April 6
The sudden arrival of Haryana Janhit Congress (HJC) chief Kuldeep Bishnoi at the residence of Mange Ram Gupta, who had left the HJC to join the INLD some months ago, has fueled speculations of Gupta’s re-entry into the HJC.

Bishnoi stayed there only for a few minutes and both refused to speak to the media after the meeting.

Gupta’s son Mahavir Gupta clarified that anyone could come to their residence and it did not mean that his father was going back to the HJC. “Bishnoi came to take the blessings of my father. Anyone can come to our residence. We are with the INLD and supporting it,” said Mahavir.

Gupta, a former Cabinet minister, joined the HJC in 2012. He later left the party to join the INLD alleging lack of respect in the HJC.

Sources said Gupta was unable to develop cordial relations with local INLD leaders, who still considered him an outsider in the party. Local INLD leaders refused to comment on the issue. “I am not sure whether he is our member or not. Only our state leadership can say anything on it,” said a senior local INLD leader.

State INLD secretary Nakshat Singh Malhan first said Gupta had not procured even the primary membership of the party. But later he took a U-turn and said: “Guptaji is our very senior member. He has a very big social circle and Bishnoi is one of his old friends.”

Karnal, April 6
Deputy Commissioner-cum-District Electoral Officer Balraj Singh and Superintendent of Police Abhishek Garg today inspected hypersensitive and sensitive booths of the district.

They also conducted meetings in villages and appealed to the people to cast their votes on April 10.

Accompanied by other officers, the two officers inspected the booths of Gonder, Nissing, Sambhli, Koer, Dachar, Narukehri, Jundla, Ghogripur and other villages in the district.

Superintendent of Police Abhishek Garg said extra forces would be deployed at hypersensitive and sensitive booths for free and fair elections.

Karnal, April 6
Outsiders remained a hot favourite of voters of the Karnal parliamentary costituency as they had voted against local leaders in the past elections. Only two local candidates have been elected from the Karnal parliamentary seat since 1967. Also, most of the runners up were also outsiders.

Madho Ram (1967, 1971) of the Congress and Mohinder Singh (1977) of the Janta Party were the two local candidates, who had represented the constituency in the Lok Sabha after Haryana was carved out of Punjab.

Political experts said Congress leader Chiranji Lal Sharma, father of Assembly Speaker Kuldeep Sharma, was an outsider when he first won from Karnal in 1980. He successfully contested from the seat in 1984, 1989, 1991. Former Chief Minister Bhajan Lal also contested from Karnal in 1998. He belonged to Hisar. Sitting MP Arvind Sharma was also an outsider when he contested his first elections in 2004. He belongs to Jhajjar and also won the next elections in 2009. Bharatiya Janata Party’s ID Swami was elected from here in 1996 and 1999.

The Karnal parliamentary constituency comprises nine Assembly segments -- Indri, Nilokheri, Karnal, Gharaunda and Assandh are located in Karnal district and Panipat (Urban), Panipat (Rural), Samalkha and Israna are in Panipat district.

Yamunanagar, April 6
Congress general secretary and former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Digvijay Singh played the communal card at Jathlana village in the district today. Campaigning for Naveen Jindal, Congress candidate for the Kurukshetra parliamentary constituency, Digvijay Singh raked up the Babri Masjid issue.

Addressing a rally in the Rajput-dominated belt of the Radaur Assembly constituency, he directly targeted BJP prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi by terming him as a chronic liar.

"Modi is telling a complete lie when he is saying he has made Gujarat a debt-free state and will make the country debt-free now. Gujarat is third on the debt burden list in the country," said Digvijay Singh.

He said a sting operation on the demolition of the Babri Masjid had exposed the extent to which the BJP and the VHP could go to fulfil the political ambition of the BJP.

He claimed that Hindus and Muslims in the country wanted to live together, but the BJP wanted to divide them, which the Congress would not allow.

Praising the Haryana Government on development, he said, "Modi claims that Gujarat is number one in terms of development, but Haryana is far ahead in terms of development, social services, health and education."

He added that reports of election surveys would turn out to be false and the Congress-led UPA would form the government for the third time.

The Congress general secretary said Jindal had discharged well his duties towards the people of his constituency during his five-year tenure and had always joined them in sorrow and joy.

Former MLA Subhash Chaudhry, Shyam Sunder Batra, BS Chauhan, Bhaskar Sharma, Naresh Sharma Panjupur, Suresh Khurdban, Raj Kumar Khurdban, Yogesh Mehandiratta, Barkha Ram and Satish Datana were present on the occasion.

Kaithal: Digvijay Singh appealed to the people to vote for Jindal as he was the only Member of Parliament who spent money from his pocket on social service schemes.

Addressing an election meeting in Rajaund village in the district on Sunday, Digvijay Singh said Jindal had rendered exemplary service to the people and was as good a politician as a social worker.

Digvijay Singh lavished praise on Naveen Jindal's late father OP Jindal, who had passed his legacy to his son. Digvijay Singh said he was proud that the Congress had made a law to ensure food security to all.

He lashed out at Modi and charged him with telling blatant lies. He said Modi's claim that Jawaharlal Nehru had not attended Vallabhbhai Patel's funeral was a white lie.

"I called his bluff by posting photographs on the social media of Dr Rajendra Prasad and Nehru attending Patel's funeral," he said.

Digvijay Singh claimed that Modi was ignorant of history and geography of the country. He said Modi had caused the political decline of Shanker Singh Vaghela, Keshubhai Patel and Kanshi Ram Rana.

Digvijay Singh claimed that Modi had created problems for LK Advani and made MM Joshi run from Varanasi. Jindal said he had strove to serve 
the people of his constituency and would continue to do so.

Gurgaon, April 6
Rao Inderjit Singh, BJP candidate from the Gurgaon Lok Sabha seat, received a much-needed boost during prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi’s rally here on Thursday. Two senior leaders -- Sudha Yadav and Rao Narbir Singh Yadav -- came forward and appealed to their supporters to vote for newly inducted Rao Inderjit.

They were reportedly upset for not being given the party ticket and the party chose Rao Inderjit, who broke his 36 years old association with the Congress to join the saffron brigade.

Justifying her absence from the constituency, Sudha said she had been campaigning for former Army chief VK Singh in Ghaziabad. Similarly, Narbir, who had contested the last Lok Sabha elections on the Haryana Janhit Congress (HJC) ticket and joined the BJP in 2011, was also not seen campaigning till a day before the Modi'a rally.

With just a few days left for the polling, most of the parties have been struggling with infighting.

Congress insiders said Power Minister Capt Ajay Singh Yadav was to be the star campaigner here, but he was not seen canvassing for Congress candidate and Badshahpur MLA Rao Dharampal. He is mostly seen accompanying Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda. Capt Yadav tried his best to get the party ticket for his son from the area.

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) received a serious blow as its district unit collapsed on the very day party convener Arvind Kejriwal held a roadshow here. After this, AAP rebels have been creating troubles for party candidate Yogendra Yadav, a fact accepted by the party.

In case of INLD, Punhana MLA Mohammad Iliyas's unhappiness with Zakir Hussain is evident from his negligible participation in campaigning for party nominee Zakir, who had recently joined the party.

Sonepat, April 6
Knowing that around 45 per cent of the voters are women and male candidates rarely approach this section of voters during canvassing, the wives of prominent candidates have taken the responsibility on their shoulders to make a personal appeal to the fair sex.

Their canvassing is done without using loud speakers and addressing election meetings. Rather, they canvass door-to-door with folded hands and with limited words. They also maintain the social decorum of touching the feet of the elders.

Laxmi Devi, wife of BJP candidate Ramesh Kaushik, has been canvassing door-to-door in different localities of Sonepat, Gohana and Gannaur town for the last 10 days. Her appeal to the women voters is to vote for BJP to ensure that Narendra Modi is the next Prime Minister.

Rajwanti Dahiya, wife of INLD candidate Padam Singh Dahiya, remains busy from 6 am to 9 pm seeking votes. She appeals the women voters to vote in the name of Devi Lal and Om Prakash Chautala. She reminds them that old age pension was introduced by Devi Lal. Generally, she is accompanied by district president of women cell of the party Babita Dahiya.

Congress nominee Jagbir Singh Malik’s wife, Santosh Malik, with her experience of around 18 years in canvassing for her husband, knows well how to seek votes. She tries to convince the women voters that Bhupinder Singh Hooda only can bring speedy development.

It is the first occasion for Gulab Kaur, wife the AAP nominee Jai Singh, to seek votes as her husband is contesting the elections for the first time. She tells the voters that Arvind Kejriwal is the only politician who wants to work for the common man in real sense. She also reminds them the involvement of her husband in gau raksha activities and making liberal donations.

Kurukshetra, April 6
Kanta Alariya, president, Indian Bahujan Sandesh Party (Kanshi Ram), yesterday criticised Naveen Jindal, Congress Member of Parliament and candidate from the Kurukshetra Lok Sabha constituency, for misleading and not mentioning pending police cases against him in the nomination papers.

Alariya said, "Naveen Jindal had not mentioned the details of the FIRs lodged against him in different cases in the nomination papers filed by him before the returning officer."

She said he had not filed details about the FIR lodged against him in the coal scam and a pending case at the Hauz Khas police station, Delhi, in which Manoranjana Sinh (the complainant) had alleged that Naveen and his company were being involved in a conspiracy against her and making a back-door entry into the companies in which she was a shareholder, founder and promoter, were missing.

Alariya said, "Even I have a case against me in Panipat and I have mentioned it, why he has not mentioned his pending cases?"

However, Rajesh Kumar, private secretary to Jindal, refuted the allegations and said, "The affidavit filed for nomination is correct."

Besides the pending cases, she targeted Naveen for using Focus TV for canvassing. She said the news channel was giving continuous coverage to him, which was a clear case of paid news and the cost should be included in his election expenditure.

Alariya said she had lodged a complaint with the returning officer and would file another complaint at the Delhi Election Commission Office on Monday. She also alleged that the district administration was not taking action against the Congress MP.

Sultanpuria (Sirsa), April 6
Despite efforts by various political parties to placate them, none of the 1900-odd voters of Sultanpuria village will cast their votes on April 10.

The villagers, who have been sitting on a dharna since March 10 in protest against the apathetic attitude of the government towards their demand for water channel from the Ghaggar canal system to irrigate their paddy fields, have unanimously resolved to boycott the parliamentary elections this time.

They said none of the poor families living in Sultanpuria village had received lands under the Mahatma Gandhi Malin Basti Yojna of the Haryana government so far.

“The village gets water from the Bhakra canal and most of the villagers have their own tubewells installed in their fields. However, the Bhakra canal water comes with a price and that too with a turn of nine minutes per acre of landholding. Floodwater from the Ghaggar canal system, however, comes for free and is rich in micronutrients,” said Kalu Ram Khichar, a villager.

The floodwater of the Ghaggar is collected in the Ottu lake, 4 km from here, from where it is supplied to different villages through various canals and minors by the Irrigation Department.

“Except for Sultanpuria, all other surrounding villages such as Dhottar, Jhorarnali, Kharia, Jeewan Nagar, Maujdeen, Mallekan and Banwala get floodwater of the Ghaggar for nearly four months in a year through the canal system set up by the Irrigation Department.

“While farmers of these villages get crop of 30 to 35 quintal basmati paddy per acre, we have to do with 18 to 20 quintals. With the prices of basmati paddy hovering near Rs 4,000 per quintal this year, each one of us has been suffering loss of Rs 60,000 to Rs 75,000 per acre in comparison with those who have land in villages 2-3 km from here,” alleged Bhajan Lal Insan, president of the action committee of Sultanpuria farmers.Farmers Devi Lal and Sahib Ram have 30 acres and 48 acres, respectively. Many others share the same sentiments and maintain that not only the parliamentary elections, but they would also boycott the Assembly poll if the authorities failed to start the minor canal project in their village. The demand is being ignored by the successive governments since 2002.

SONEPAT, APRIL 6
Rich tributes were paid to former Deputy Prime Minister Devi Lal on his death anniversary by INLD leaders and workers after garlanding his statue near the local bus stand today.

INLD leaders pay tributes to Devi Lal near his statue in Sonepat on Sunday. Tribune photo

INLD spokesman KC Bangar said Devi Lal was a real well-wisher of the common man and devoted his whole life fighting for the rights of people.

Devi lal’s slogans-- “Lokraj Loklaaj Se Chalta Hai”, “Bharastachar Bundh- Paani Ka Prabandh” and “Har Pet Ko Roti- Baki Baten Khoti” were still talked about by people. Dr Bangar said Devi Lal was not only a politician but also an institution in himself in the field of politics of moral values, honesty and simplicity.

INLD candidate from Sonepat Padam Singh Dahiya said Devi Lal was a leader of masses. He was the one who waived off the loans of small and marginal farmers for the first time in the country.

Jind: Remembering the contribution made by Chaudhary Devi Lal, who served as the Chief Minister of Haryana twice, on his 14th death anniversary, Anirudh Devilal, his youngest grandson, said people seemed to have forgotten his principles. Stating that the patriarch of the Chautala clan, Ch. Devi Lal, always worked for the progress and betterment of Haryana and India, Anirudh washed his statue and offered flowers. 

Jind, April 6
To follow the deadline of completing all mandatory arrangements, set up by the Election Commission, the Jind district administration has started sealing Electronic voting machines (EVMs). The administration will then place these at all polling stations.

In Jind Lok Sabha constituency, there are 153 election centres in total. For all these centres, the administration plans to use 153 control unit and 306 ballot units, while to meet any emergency, the administration plans to keep 15 control units and 30 ballot units reserved.

Officials said the reserved units will not be placed in election booths, but in the official vehicles of the concerned officials so that they could immediately be put to use if the need arises.

“We have made special arrangements for visually impaired voters. We do not want to take any chances and are completing all necessary arrangements in advance,” said Jind SDM Amrita Siwach, who is Assistant Returning Officer for Jind.

About training of officers, she said the administration will organise a special programme to train all officials on duty for the proper use of EVMs and other election-related material on April 6.A“All officers must take this duty most seriously as the ECI has already clarified that dereliction of election duty will not be tolerated at any cost. Officers who do not follow the ECI directions will face strict departmental action,” said Siwach. 

Gurgaon, April 6
Nusrat Bano is one amongst the thousands of veiled women in Mewat. However, what makes her feel special and proud every poll season is the fact that she has voted in every single election since the last 30 years.

As we try to quiz her about her choice this time, expecting her to refuse to answer citing secrecy of ballot, she is confused over the phrase.

"What secrecy? Everybody at the booth knows whom a voter is choosing as we tell our choice to a male accompanying us or an official on duty and he presses the button," she quips.

Is she not convenient operating the EVM?

"Ye riwaz hai, warna button dabane me kya hai?" (It is a practice, otherwise pressing a button is no big deal). This one line answer probably comes as the last nail in the claims that the region's women have become politically more aware and important.

While 2,94,000 women are on electoral rolls this year, they are yet to be identified as politically important, a fact evident from the lack of women candidates, issues and interest to address them on part of the current candidates. The voting continues to be a ‘man thing’ as in majority of cases it is the men who are being trusted with opertaing EVMs for them.

While the government authorities claim that it is just the old and frail who are allowed to get help, a conversation with any woman brings out the reality, which is in contrast with this claim.

"If five women in front of us ask their husbands to press the button, even we have to do so. Moreover, how can you not vote to the same person as your husband when you have to tell him to press the button? I am from Alwar and initially found it peculiar but have now adjust to it after 10 years of marriage," says Salma Bano.

The fact has remained oblivious to many but now AAP candidate Yogendra Yadav has filed a complaint to the Returning Officer of Gurgaon yesterday, saying that there has been a rampant violation of the People's Representation Act in the constituency in the previous elections. These violations pertain to the exercise of secret ballot in the Mewat area, especially involving female voters of the region.

"Female voters verbally indicate their choice and then someone else presses the button on their behalf. This has become an accepted practice over the years and is done in full knowledge and approval of the government staff on duty. The practice is highly susceptible to abuse and violates the basic rights of women. How can we think of woman empowerment when such undemocratic practices are being adopted in certain parts of our constituency," read the complaint.

Yadav said women volunteers of the party had been visiting hundreds of villages in the Mewat region and talking to the local women.

"We are appalled by the sad state where women want to vote without any interference but are not allowed to do so, owing to the stiff tradition that this practice has become. We have requested the returning officer to sensitise and train the government staff on duty in the affected region and provide specific instructions to the assistant returning officer and the booth level officer to take preventive action against such practices," said Yadav.

Jind, April 6
Hundreds of government officials on election duty are busy practising speedy typing of SMSes instead of other poll-related duties. The reason is that the Election Commission has directed supervisory staff to keep sending SMSes to assistant returning officers concerned about all happenings in their respective areas during elections.

The mobile numbers of the entire supervisory staff have been registered with the official website of the Election Commission. The feedback received through SMSes will be uploaded on the official website.

“It is the first time SMSes will be used for feedback from the supervisory staff in the General Election. It is the easiest and best way to take direct feedback from the field,” said MZR Badar, district information officer and nodal officer of SMS-based poll management.

“The direct feedback received through SMSes will be immediately uploaded on the official website of the Election Commission. We have provided the required training to the supervisory staff,” he said.

For many who had never used SMSes, the order had come as a big problem as they did not know how to type an SMS. Typing SMSes correctly and with good speed, as required during the hectic election schedule, had multiplied their problems. Interacting with The Tribune, many admitted that they were learning to type and send SMSes speedily from their children.

“It is not a tough thing, but the problem is that I have never sent any SMS prior to this. Now suddenly, it has been made mandatory for me. I am trying to learn it quickly,” said a 52-year-old superintendent with a government department on the condition of anonymity.

A 48-year-old employee posted at the local office of the Health Department said this grandson had become his teacher. “He comes back from school at 2 pm. After that, he starts sending SMSes to me from my wife’s mobile phone. I try to reply quickly to practise. Many times, he finds mistakes in my SMSes. I am trying to become an SMS expert,” he said.

Directions had been issued to the supervisory staff to keep sending SMSes to their assistant returning officers about departure to the polling centre, arrival at the polling centre, starting of polling, polling percentage every two hours, conclusion of polling and other poll-related developments in their respective areas.

Jind, April 6
Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) leader Abhay Singh Chautala yesterday accused Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda of misusing the state police to show huge crowds during his ongoing road shows in various districts of the state. He also dared the CM to interact with common voters of Haryana rather than confining himself to the top of his ‘rath’ if there was a pro-Congress wave.

“The CM knows very well that there is a strong anti-Congress wave in Haryana as all voters are fed up with Congress. He fears that if he interacts with common voters, he would definitely face ‘shoe missile’ as on the very first day he had faced a slap. We dare Hooda to prove us wrong by conducting his remaining roadshows out of his ‘rath’,” Chauatala said at the old grain market here. The INLD had organised the rally here in the support of Sonepat candidate Padam Singh Dahiya.

Raising a finger at some officers of the Haryana Police, who are allegedly helping Hooda in showing huge crowds during his road shows by deputing hundreds of constables as common men, Chautala alleged that during the forthcoming elections the voters would defeat Congress and expose all such tactics adopted to show a “Congress wave”.

“The constables sit in the front as common voters while the genuine voters never attend these meetings. The constables have been directed to clap after every statement of the CM. This is the situation of the CM, who has stooped to such a level that now constables are forced to clap for him,” alleged Chauatala.

About corruption allegations against his family members, Chautala reiterated that everyone in the state knew that his family members had paid a huge price for giving jobs to hundreds of unemployed youngsters of the state.

“My father and brother have done nothing wrong. Both of them have been implicated falsely,” Chautala added.

Sirsa, April 6
Political motives are being attributed to the stalling of construction of the railway overbridge by the Punjab authorities at Dabwali in Sirsa on April 3, with Haryana Chief Minister’s former OSD KV Singh calling it “dirty politics” by the SAD government. The Punjab authorities retracted within 24 hours and allowed the construction company to resume work.

Kunal Sapolia, Subdivisional Engineer with the Public Works Department (Buildings and Roads) at Malout in Punjab, went to the site on April 3 and ordered officials to stop work. The police accompanying him warned the manager that an FIR would be registered against him if he continued the work.

“The road on which the railway overbridge is being built falls under the jurisdiction of the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI). Punjab or its Public Works Department does not have any control over it,” KV Singh asserted.

He alleged that work had been stopped as the Congress government had got work on the project started, which the previous INLD government had not been able to do even though it was a long-standing demand.

Sapolia said later that he stopped the work due to technical reasons and he had told the company to resume work. He said the department had received a communication from the NHAI and allowed resumption of work.

Karan Singh Chautala, looking after Rori’s campaign in Sirsa, rubbished KV Singh’s allegations. “If some official stalls work due to some technical reasons, how can the INLD or SAD be blamed for it,” he asked. He asked Congress leaders why they had started work ahead of elections and not 10 years back.

Kurukshetra, April 6
“We need to teach English, which is an international language of business, communication and cultural exchange, with Hindi, which is our national language, but not promote Hindi at the cost of English,” said Lt-Gen (retd) DDS Sandhu, Vice-Chancellor, Kurukshetra University, here today.

He was addressing the gathering at the alumni meet ‘Revivre 2014’, organised by the department of English of the university. It was the first alumni meet of the department and more than 250 alumni participated in it. Sandhu said students should interact with alumni so that they learnt from experience of seniors working as leaders in various fields who had greater exposure.

Prof Bhim S Dahya, former Vice-Chancellor, Kurukshetra University, was the chief guest. An alumnus of the first batch (1961-63), he said, “I recall with great reverence my teachers who taught us like their own children and kindled in us the energy to serve society through teaching. They told us that if we wanted to be teachers, we must have love for reading and writing. The lectures on Shakespeare’s Hamlet and King Lear delivered by Prof Sarup Singh are still fresh in my memory.”

PC Sharma, former CBI Director and former National Human Rights Commission Member, also spoke. An alumnus of the 1962 batch, he said, “The seeds of hard work, sincerity, honesty, humanistic outlook and social integration of education are always sown in an individual’s life by teachers when a student attends a university. I am proud to say these seeds were sown in my life at Kurukshetra University while attending my master’s course in English.”

Yamunanagar, April 6
A 50-year-old woman was stabbed to death here last night. The victim was bedridden for the past 15 years due to paralysis.

In a complaint to the Farakpur police, victim Pholan Devi’s son Arun Kumar said when he returned home at 9.30 am today from duty, he found his mother lying dead in a pool of blood on the floor. A knife and a handkerchief were found near her body.

He said he was working in a plywood factory and his father was employed with the Jagadhri railway workshop.

Arun said when he left for duty last night, his father and mother were at home. He said when he returned home in the morning, the doors of the house were bolted from outside.

He said his father was not at home at that time. He tried to call him on his mobile phone but in vain. Later, he informed his relatives and the police about the incident.