October state poll to be my last bow: Haryana ex-CM Bhupinder Singh Hooda

Geetanjali Gayatri

Chandigarh, July 5

The October Assembly poll in Haryana will be the last election that Bhupinder Singh Hooda, the Leader of Opposition and former Congress Chief Minister, contests.

Though he is mum on the issue in public, and even refused to answer a question pertaining to his future at a media briefing, Congress sources said he conveyed his decision to the party top brass at a recent meeting of the state leaders. The meeting, held to deliberate on the strategy for the Assembly elections, was chaired by Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge. Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi and party general secretary KC Venugopal were among those present.

Dream sign-off

• Having wielded clout in the party and the state unit for over two decades, Hooda is hoping to sign off from his political career with a comeback in the Assembly elections and a government term for the Congress in the state.

As per information, Hooda, buoyed by wins in five seats in the recent Lok Sabha poll, said the stage had been set for a Congress government in the state. “He said the time could not be more conducive for a win in the elections. He went on to add that this would be his last election and he would give it his all to ensure a victory,” sources in the know of things claimed, indicating that Hooda was ready to call it a day.

They said senior Congress leader Birender Singh also advised Hooda to hang up his boots and make way for new leadership in the state. Rahul Gandhi, citing the example of Capt Amarinder Singh — a former Chief Minister of Punjab — said the latter once declared his retirement, only to return to electoral fray in 2022. Responding to this, Hooda reiterated his decision to retire and said he meant what he had said.

Though the elections are over three months away, the party is set to resume its meetings in the districts. While Hooda is holding a meeting in Gurugram on July 7, he will hold a second meeting in Bhiwani and Dadri on July 8, followed by a meeting in Fatehabad and Hisar on July 12 and July 13, respectively, to conclude the programme.

“Some of the districts were covered in the first phase, when meetings were held before the Lok Sabha poll. Once all the districts are covered, the party is looking to aggressively campaign in all 90 Assembly constituencies. The plan is ready and workers are raring to go,” a Congress leader said, adding that Hooda was actively involved in finalising the strategy with state unit chief Udai Bhan and party national general secretary Deepak Babaria, who is in charge of Haryana.

Having wielded clout in the party and the state unit for over two decades, Hooda is hoping to make a comeback in the Assembly, form the government — and then finally bow out.

After making a splash in the recent Lok Sabha elections by winning five of 10 seats in Haryana, the Congress is upbeat and relying on the anti-incumbency factor after 10 years of the BJP government.