Congress to corner govt on paper leaks, corruption in Assembly, says Hooda

Former Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda has vowed that the Congress will raise issues of paper leaks, unemployment, law and order and corruption during the upcoming Assembly session.

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Speaking to mediapersons at his residence, Hooda alleged that the BJP government is shielding the paper leak mafia, leading to repeated exam scandals. “One paper after another is getting leaked, from board exams to recruitment. The entire state now knows that the BJP is protecting these mafias. Yet, no action has been taken against anyone so far,” he said.

He also took a dig at the government over corruption, citing the mining scam. “Even the high court has exposed the government on the mining scam. But instead of taking action, they are trying to cover it up,” Hooda said.

Hooda further criticised the BJP’s economic policies, stating that public expectations from the upcoming Budget are low. “In the past 10 years, the BJP has only increased Haryana’s debt. No major industry, university, medical college or significant project has been established,” he claimed.

Reacting to the upcoming municipal elections, Hooda reiterated the Congress' demand for ballot paper voting, opposing the removal of VVPAT from EVMs. “Even developed nations like the US conduct elections through ballot papers. Electronic voting machines can be manipulated. Elections in India should also be held using ballot paper,” he said.

On the issue of declining payments under the PM Fasal Bima Yojana, Hooda alleged that the scheme benefits private insurance firms rather than farmers. “In 2022-23, Haryana farmers were paid Rs 2,496.89 crore under the scheme. However, in 2023-24, the payout dropped drastically to Rs 224.43 crore, a 90% decline,” he said.

He added that the national figures also reflected a downward trend, with insurance claims dropping from Rs 18,211.73 crore in 2022-23 to Rs 15,504.87 crore in 2023-24. “This proves that the scheme is nothing but a way to fill private insurance companies’ coffers at the expense of farmers,” Hooda said.