Close contest on the anvil in nine seats of Karnal, Kaithal

A tight contest is expected in five Assembly constituencies of Karnal and four of Kaithal districts. Of these nine segments, the BJP and the Congress are in a direct contest in six.

In 2019, BJP won FIVE of these

• In the 2019 Assembly elections, the BJP claimed five of these seats, including Karnal, Gharaunda, Indri, Kalayat and Kaithal
• The Congress secured one seat, Assandh, and the JJP won Guhla, while Independent candidates captured Pundri and Nilokheri

In the 2019 Assembly elections, the BJP claimed five of these seats, including Karnal, Gharaunda, Indri, Kalayat and Kaithal; the Congress secured one seat, Assandh, and the JJP won Guhla, while Independent candidates captured Pundri and Nilokheri.

The analysis on ground reflects BJP candidate Jagmohan Anand is facing a direct face-off with Congress candidate and former MLA Sumita Singh in Karnal segment. In Indri, BJP’s Ram Kumar Kashyap is locked in a neck-and-neck contest with Congress candidate Rakesh Kamboj.

In Gharaunda, BJP’s Harvinder Kalyan is battling it out with Congress candidate Virender Rathore. In Assandh, Congress candidate Shamsher Singh Gogi is locked in a multi-cornered contest with BJP candidate Yoginder Rana, Independent Zile Ram Sharma and INLD-BSP candidate Gopal Rana. In Nilokheri, BJP candidate Bhagwan Das Kabirpanthi and Congress candidate Dharmpal Gonder are in a direct contest.

Kaithal district is also witnessing similar intense competition. Aditya Surjewala, son of Rajya Sabha MP Randeep Surjewala, is in a direct contest with BJP’s former MLA Leela Ram in Kaithal.

The Kalayat constituency is all set for a multi-cornered contest, with BJP candidate Kamlesh Dhanda facing off against Vikas Saharan, son of Hisar MP Jai Parkash, INLD state president Rampal Majra, and AAP’s Anurag Dhanda.

In Pundri, Congress candidate Sultan Jadola, who has gained the support of two Independent candidates recently, is in a triangular contest with BJP’s Satpal Jamba and Independent Satvir Bhana.

Similarly, the Guhla segment is in a direct contest between Congress candidate Devender Hans and BJP’s former MLA Kulwant Bazigar. Political analysts consider both Karnal and Kaithal are set to witness high-stakes battles that could significantly shape the political future of the BJP and the Congress. They consider the caste factor has given a new dimension in the past couple of days. “Former CM Manohar Lal Khattar played a Punjabi card while addressing a gathering in Karnal. The results will reveal whether the move was effective or not. The caste dynamics were different in 2014 and 2019 in comparison to the present election. It may give an edge to both the BJP and the Congress. The results of all these nine seats may be different from what it appears now,” said Dr Kushal Pal, a political analyst and principal Indira Gandhi National College, Ladwa.