Open to joining third front by INLD-BSP, says Charuni

deepender Deswal

Hisar, July 18

The third front being floated by the INLD-BSP alliance in Haryana could have another constituent joining it as the Bhartiya Kisan Union (BKU) leader Gurnam Singh Charuni, who formed a political outfit Samyukta Sangharsh Party (SSP), said he was open to an alliance with the third front ahead of the Assembly elections in Haryana.

Talking to The Tribune today, Charuni said his party has been gearing up to join the electoral fray in the Assembly elections. “We launched our campaign formally from Nimdiwali village in Bhiwani district today. The party has an agenda of welfare of farmers and working classes on priority,” he said. Charuni said he would contest the next Assembly elections from the Pehowa Assembly segment in Kurukshetra district.

He, however, said he was open to the idea of having an alliance with the third front in Haryana. “In fact, we have decided to have an alliance sans the BJP and the JJP in Haryana. The third front is an option before us, though we have not held any discussions till now on the issue,” he said, adding he was also not averse to an alliance with the Congress as well.

Charuni though added that as of now he would be visiting across the state to mobilise the farmers and working classes for a political awakening and also to prepare his workers for contesting the elections. “We could field candidates on all 90 Assembly segments in case the party does not have any political alliance,” he said.

The BKU leader has been one of the prominent faces of the farmers’ leaders during the recent farm agitation in Haryana. Nursing political ambitions, he has been trying to expand his base in areas which have considerable influence of farmers. Notably, he had also unsuccessfully contested the 2019 Assembly elections from Ladwa Assembly constituency as an Independent candidate.

Charuni’s political plans had suffered a setback when all of his 10 candidates in the previous Punjab Assembly polls not only failed to secure their security deposits but collectively could poll just about 17,000 votes.

Charuni, however, is known as close to the INLD leader Abhay Singh Chautala and had also announced his support to Chautala during the Lok Sabha elections. Chautala was an INLD candidate from Kurukshetra Lok Sabha constituency, who trailed at third position behind the winner Naveen Jindal of the BJP and Sushil Gupta of the AAP.