Hooda to limit Jan Jagran to cities till panchayat polls

Naveen S Garewal

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, July 1

Former CM Bhupinder Singh Hooda has amended his plans for the ongoing Jan Jagran Abhiyian on account of the forthcoming panchayat polls in the state.

After holding successful public rallies in 15 Assembly segments, he has announced that he will concentrate on areas that have nigams.

In the rallies, Hooda is highlighting how the BJP government has going back on its pre-poll promises. He started the abhiyan from Kandela village in Jind on May 31 marking the beginning of the Congress drive against what he called “BJP cheating the people” by reneging on its promises.

Hooda has the support of 14 out of 15 Congress MLAs in the Vidhan Sabha in his anti-government tirade.

While Hooda held public rallies at various places in the state, HPCC chief Ashok Tanwar launched a parallel ‘padyatra’. The response to Hooda has been very encouraging and his supporters claim that fazed by the response, CM Manohar Lal Khattar rescheduled his rally at Panipat from morning to evening to avoid comparison with the crowds the latter would draw. The BJP has said that the timing was moved to avoid the heat during the day.

The Congress also claims that on the same day (June 28th) Khattar cancelled the laying of foundation stone of a sugar mill at Panipat to avoid thin attendance by locals attending the Hooda rally. But the BJP said the function was cancelled over the ownership of the sugar mill.

Since panchayat elections will be held in August Hooda would now concentrate on towns and cities and take it easy as “it is not possible to go to more than one or two places in a village, but Congress supporters want him to go to the house of every candidate which was impossible”.

Hooda has also been accusing the Khattar government of going back on poll promises like uninterrupted power supply in rural areas, grant of Rs 2000 as old age and widow pension, providing an unemployment allowance, implementing the Swaminathan Commission recommendations, stopping the scholarship of SC and BC students, stalling the scheme that aimed at provided housing for all, inadequate remuneration to farmers.