Atypical ‘bi-cornered’ contest in Sirsa sets stage for fierce show by Congress

The Congress party, ranked fourth in Sirsa in the 2014 and 2019 elections, is working to secure a strong position in the Vidhan Sabha constituency. Back in 2009, the party had managed to secure the third place. However, this time, the party seems to be in a much better position, fiercely competing with other parties and showing significant improvement.

A total of 2,32,212 votes are expected to be cast in Sirsa, with the voter turnout of 80 per cent being projected. To win, candidates will need to secure at least 75,000 votes. The competition is expected to be a tough one as the votes will be divided among four major candidates, making the race even tighter than before.

In the 2019 elections, Makhan Lal Singla of the INLD topped the charts with 46,573 votes, followed closely by Gopal Kanda in second place with 43,635 votes. Congress candidate Naveen Kedia finished fourth that year, receiving only 9,779 votes.

Political analyst Gurjeet Mann says the Congress is finally visible in the fight after 25 years, and attributed this change to the current elections being bi-cornered rather than multi-cornered. In the past, the Congress faced losses due to fragmented votes. Mann also highlighted a growing anti-incumbency sentiment against the current BJP government. Despite internal divisions, voters in Sirsa seem to be rallying around Congress this time.

Mann highlighted that the BJP government’s policies, especially those affecting the youth, athletes and farmers, had negatively impacted the state and Sirsa. Frustration over the BJP’s initiatives coupled with a long-standing drug epidemic that has devastated thousands of families has fueled public anger toward the government’s failures, he says.

Direct fight between Gokul Setia, Gopal Kanda

A total of 13 candidates are contesting the Sirsa Assembly election, with the main competition between Congress candidate Gokul Setia and Gopal Kanda from the Haryana Lokhit Party. Other candidates include Pawan Sherpura from the JJP, Shyam Sundar from the Aam Aadmi Party, besides several Independents. In the previous elections, Kanda defeated Setia by 602 votes when Setia was an Independent candidate.