The INLD has released its second list of candidates, positioning senior leaders for challenging contests in the Haryana Assembly polls. The party has fielded Sher Singh Barshami, a staunch loyalist of former party supremo Om Prakash Chautala, from the Ladwa constituency. This decision comes amid strong speculation that CM Nayab Singh Saini might contest from Ladwa. The Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) has released its second list of candidates, positioning senior leaders for challenging contests in the upcoming Haryana Assembly elections. The party has fielded Sher Singh Barshami, a staunch loyalist of former party supremo Om Prakash Chautala, from the Ladwa constituency.
This decision of fielding Barshami – a Jat face from the region, – comes amid strong speculation that Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini might also contest from Ladwa, setting the stage for a high-stakes battle. Ladwa constituency is represented by Congress’ Mewa Singh, who is also a Jat. In a move likely to attract significant attention, the INLD has nominated Arjun Chautala, son of party leader Abhay Chautala, from the Rania constituency. This seat is currently held by Arjun’s grandfather, former Haryana Cabinet Minister Ranjit Chautala, making it a potential family face-off in the elections.
Arjun’s entry into the fray from Rania may add to the already escalating conflict between BJP leader Ranjit Chautala and Haryana Lokhit Party President and Sirsa MLA Gopal Kanda as Chautala declaring his intention to contest the upcoming assembly elections from the Rania—where Kanda has already announced his nephew Dhawal as the HLP candidate in alliance with the BJP.
The INLD’s list, which includes seven candidates, also features Sheela Rathi from Bahadurgarh. Sheela is the widow of the party’s former state president, Nafe Singh Rathi, who was tragically murdered by gangsters in Jhajjar on February 25. In another strategic move, the party has fielded its senior leader and current state president, Rampal Majra, from the Kalayat constituency in Kaithal district.
Further strengthening its position in crucial constituencies, the INLD has nominated Taiyab Hussain Bimsika from the Muslim-dominated Hathin Assembly constituency in Nuh and Master Gurtej Singh Sukhchain from the reserved Kalanwali constituency in Sirsa district.
Barshami, a key figure in the INLD, was previously convicted in the 2013 teachers’ recruitment scam along with Om Prakash Chautala and his son Ajay Singh Chautala to ten years’ imprisonment under various provisions of the Indian Penal Code and the Prevention of Corruption Act for illegally recruiting over 3,000 unqualified teachers.
Facing challenges to maintain its political relevance in Haryana, the INLD has forged an alliance with the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and is contesting on 53 assembly seats .
