Congress to contest civic polls on party symbol

The Congress has decided to contest the upcoming Municipal Corporation elections in Haryana, including the mayoral polls, on the party symbol, following a key leadership meeting held in Delhi on Friday.

The meeting, chaired by Haryana Congress president Udai Bhan, was attended by senior leaders, including former Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, former Union Minister Birender Singh, along with party MPs, MLAs and other state leaders.

However, Sirsa MP Kumari Selja and Rajya Sabha MP Randeep Surjewala were absent.

Party insiders revealed that only the Municipal Corporation and mayoral elections will be contested on the party symbol.

"The meeting authorised the state Congress president to decide on contesting municipal council and committee elections on the party symbol," sources said. However, a majority of leaders opposed the use of the party symbol in municipal committee elections.

Following the meeting, Haryana Congress president Udai Bhan confirmed the party’s stance, stating: "The party will contest the elections of municipal corporations and mayors on its symbol."

The Congress also demanded that municipal elections be conducted using ballot papers instead of electronic voting machines (EVMs).

"A delegation of state Congress leaders will soon meet the Election Commissioner of Haryana to press for this demand," Bhan added.

Echoing the demand, Congress MP from Rohtak, Deepender Singh Hooda, voiced concerns over EVMs, stating that the party had no faith in electronic voting machines.

"The conduct of elections through EVMs raises doubts over the poll process. Hence, we will urge the Election Commission to conduct the municipal elections through ballot papers," Hooda asserted.

He further pointed out that recent elections in Uttarakhand were conducted using ballot papers, setting a precedent for Haryana.