After being expelled from the Indian National Lok Dal, former Haryana Chief Minister Om Parkash Chautala’s elder son Ajay Chautala on Tuesday said that his yet to be formed party will contest both Lok Sabha and assembly polls scheduled next year in the state.
“The new party will contest on all 10 Lok Sabha seats from Haryana as well as the next year’s assembly elections” said Ajay Chautala while talking to the mediapersons in New Delhi, just before his parole ended.
Ajay, who is facing a 10-year jail term along with his father OP Chautala since 2013 in a teachers’ recruitment scam, was out on parole for 15 days.
His new party will be formally launched on December 9 at Jind following a split in the Indian National Lok Dal, a result of the power struggle between him and his younger brother Abhay Chautala.
Abhay is Leader of opposition in Haryana Assembly and INLD’s MLA from Ellenabad.
The announcement to float the new party was made by Ajay at Jind on November 17 days after INLD patriarch OP Chautala had expelled three family members from the party—first his grandsons Hisar MP Dushyant and Digvijay, and then Ajay—for alleged “anti-party activities”.
Ajay’s wife and Dabwali MLA, Naina Chautala, who dared the party to have her expelled as well, has been spared from any disciplinary action as of now.
The INLD is Haryana's main opposition party. Dushyant and Digvijay Chautala are the great-grandsons of former Deputy Prime Minister Devi Lal.
Ajay Chautala told the mediapersons that the name of the new party will include Rs Jan Nayak', an apparent reference to the Chautala brothers’ grandfather and former deputy Prime Minister Devi Lal.
Ajay said that it’s time to follow the path shown by Chaudhary Devi Lal.
The name of the party will be announced at the rally on December 9 at Jind.
Ajay also hinted at attending the December 9 rally.
“I have given directions to the party workers to gear up for the rally. I will meet them all on December 9 now,” he added.
Ajay also said the new outfit is likely to contest the bypoll for the Jind assembly seat, which fell vacant in August after the demise of INLD MLA Hari Chand Middha.
Responding to the statement made by Abhay Chautala’s camp, Ajay said that neither Naina demanded that she be given the post of LoP nor has Dushyant made any demand to become CM.
“Dushyant has always maintained that he will contest the parliamentary elections,” he said.
Abhay Chautala’s camp had claimed that the younger brother had offered to hand over the Leader of Opposition post in Haryana Assembly to Ajay Chautala’s MLA wife Naina Devi and make his son Dushyant Chautala the INLD’s chief ministerial candidate.
When asked if Dushyant Chautala will be given the main responsibility of the new political outfit, Ajay said, “We all will sit together and decide on this.”
On the recent developments in the Chautala clan, Ajay said that he will brief the INLD chief OP Chautala, also lodged in Tihar jail, about it.
I will also give the patriarch a list of INLD office bearers who have resigned after coming out in his support, he added.
Responding to a question on those still in the INLD, Ajay said, “What is left in the party now. It is Abhay Chautala’s responsibility to run it.”
Meanwhile, the resignations continued to pour in the support of Ajay Chautala. Former minister and senior INLD leader from Mewat, Mohammed Illyas, resigned from the INLD on Tuesday to express solidarity with the ousted leader. In Rohtak, Ajay’s supporters brought down the INLD flag from the party office.
At the rally held in Jind on November 17, Ajay Chautala had said, “I hand over the INLD and the spectacles (party symbol) to my younger brother as a gift. I will float a separate party”
On the other hand, Abhay Chautala hit back at his elder brother on Tuesday saying they will admit to have made a big mistake.
Abhay, while talking to the mediapersons in Sirsa said that his elder brother (Ajay) and Naina Chautala are blinded by the love for their sons.
Slamming his elder brother and his family, Abhay said “One day they will have to apologise before (Om Prakash) Chautala Sahab and admit that they made a big mistake.”
On the reported resignations in the party, he claimed that no office bearer has resigned.
“People who have already been thrown out of the party are being paraded by them now,” Abhay added.
When asked whether the recent developments have affected the INLD, he said that the party is strong. The INLD-BSP has now geared up to begin “Adhikaar Yatra” on December 1 from Kurukshetra to press for their demand of construction of Sutlej Yamuna Link (SYL) canal, he added.
After being out of power since 2005, the INLD had in April this year announced to join hands with the BSP to contest 2019 Lok Sabha polls and assembly polls in Haryana.
Notably, INLD chief OP Chautala and his elder son, Ajay, were convicted in the JBT (junior basic teacher) recruitment scam in January 2013. Both were sentenced to 10 years in prison by a Central Bureau of Investigation court in Delhi.
The father and son have been barred from contesting elections due to the conviction.
The INLD has been managed by Abhay Chautala since then.