Congress on Friday announced to support INlD-backed candidate lawyer RK Anand who is pitted against BJP-sponsored independent candidate and media baron Subhash Chandra in Rajya Sabha polls, scheduled to be held on June 11.
The decision was taken during the meeting of Haryana Congress legislature Party (ClP) at the party headquarters in New Delhi on Friday.
There are three candidates in the fray for the two Rajya Sabha seats from Haryana. While Union Minister Birender Singh is likely to win easily, a tough contest was expected between the two independent candidates -- advocate RK Anand and media baron Subhash Chandra.
Chandra was reportedly relying on BJP to garner support for him for the Rajya Sabha seat.
Both media baron Subhash Chandra and lawyer RK Anand had on May 31filed their nomination papers as independent candidates for the second Rajya Sabha.
Haryana’s two Rajya Sabha seats, currently occupied by Union Ministers Birender Singh and Suresh Prabhu, will fall vacant on August 1.
During the meeting of Haryana ClP, a resolution was passed to support RK Anand in Rajya Sabha election. Barring Karan Singh Dalal and Raghubir Kadiyan, all Congress MlAs including former Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, ClP leader Kiran Chaudhry among others were present during the meeting. Senior leader Kuldeep Bishnoi, who recently merged his HJC with Congress and his wife Renuka Bishnoi and Haryana Congress chief Ashok Tanwar also attended the meeting.
Talking to the mediapersons, AICC general secretary and in-charge of party affairs in Haryana, B K Hariprasad said, “Congress has decided to vote against the BJP-sponsored Chandra and in favour of R K Anand.”
Noted lawyer RK Anand also turned up at the Congress meeting and expressed his faith in the leadership. Anand told the media, “I will support Congress on the floor of the House. I have always fought against RSS' policies and it will continue in the future also.”
Talking to the media, ClP leader Kiran Chaudry said, “The party has decided to support RK Anand in the Rajya Sabha election. He had sought our support and also assured us his support on the floor of the House.”
In the absence of its own candidate, the Congress was in a dilemma as in case it chose to vote it will have to side with a candidate backed by either BJP or INlD.
BJP has 47 MlAs in the 90-member Assembly, INlD 19, Congress 17 (Kuldeep Bishnoi's two-member HJC merged with Congress recently), BSP one, SAD one and there are five Independents.
Chandra had claimed that he was in touch with individual MlAs in the Assembly and exuded confidence that he will have a comfortable victory.