Sirsa MP Kumari Selja gives Rahul's Barwala rally a miss
Sirsa MP and former Union minister Kumari Selja skipped the Congress rally organised in the Barwala assembly constituency on Thursday, and which was attended by the party’s senior leaders Rahul Gandhi, Bhupinder Hooda and Udai Bhan, besides the candidates of all nine Assembly constituencies of the Hisar Lok Sabha segment.
Sources said Selja had campaigned in Tohana and Hisar Assembly segments, where the Congress has fielded her loyalists. She wanted a ticket for Youth Congress leader Krishan Satrod from Barwala, but the party opted for former MLA Ram Niwas Ghorela, which reportedly irked Selja.
However, earlier in the day, she shared the stage with Rahul and Hooda at a public rally held in the Assandh assembly constituency in Karnal district, which was the first-ever appearance of Rahul in Haryana during the ongoing Assembly elections.
The Barwala assembly segment in Hisar happens to be her home district. While Rahul was attending the rally at Barwala, she was holding a simultaneous rally at Saniana village of adjoining Tohana Assembly constituency in Fatehabad district. After holding a meeting at Tohana, she reached the Hisar Assembly segment to campaign for party nominee Ram Niwas Rara.
Party sources said Selja had campaigned in the Tohana and Hisar Assembly segments, where the Congress had fielded candidates loyal to her. The sources said she wanted a ticket for Youth Congress leader Krishan Satrod from Barwala, but the party opted for former MLA Ram Niwas Ghorela, which reportedly irked Selja and this seemed to be the reason why she did not attend the rally.
However, during her campaign in Hisar, she urged people to ensure Rara's victory. She also campaigned for party candidate Paramvir Singh at Tohana.
After several days of silence, it was the first public appearance of the Sirsa MP along with Rahul at Assandh to campaign for her loyalist, sitting MLA Shamsher Gogi.
She is scheduled to address rallies in Fatehabad, Kalanwali, Kalanwali and Dabwali Assembly constituencies of Fatehabad and Sirsa districts on Friday. The candidates here are also closely associated with Selja.