Long list of aspirants for BJP, Congress tickets in Ahir-dominated Mahendragarh
Tribune News Service
Mahendragarh, September 2
Mahendragarh district, dominated by the Ahir community, is set to witness an interesting contest in all its four Assembly segments as both prominent parties — the BJP and the Congress — have long lists of ticket aspirants for the Assembly elections scheduled on October 5.
Interestingly, many retired bureaucrats, including IAS and IPS officers and a judge, too, are vying for the ticket. The district, which is located along the border of Haryana and Rajasthan, means a lot for the saffron party which has been displaying a good performance in the past two Assembly polls.
At present, the BJP has its three MLAs in Narnaul, Nangal Choudhary and Ateli constituencies while the Congress has one in Mahendragarh. The BJP is again largely banking on the Ahirwal region (Mahendragarh is also part of it) to retain power, while the Congress, too, is leaving no stone unturned to corner the BJP in the elections this time.
As far as the electors are concerned, a total of 7,31,753 voters would elect four MLAs from the four constituencies of the district. Among them, 3,85,544 are male and 3,46,209 are female voters.
As per reports, Mahendragarh has the highest number of voters (2,08,862) – 1,09,541 male and 99,321 female — among the four Assembly constituencies.
BJP senior leader and former minister Ram Bilas Sharma is again a strong contender for the party ticket from here. He lost the previous electoral battle at the hands of Congress’ Rao Dan Singh with a margin of over 10,220. Both candidates are likely to take on each other this time too.
There are a total of 2,02,154 voters in Ateli constituency, which is being represented by BJP MLA Sitaram Yadav. Of these, 1,06,199 are male and 95,955 are female voters. Sitaram defeated his nearest rival and BSP candidate Thakur Attar Lal by a margin of 18,406 votes in the previous Assembly polls. It was Sitaram’s debut poll battle. Interestingly, the JJP and the Congress candidates were third and fourth, respectively, in these elections.
A total of 1,55,690 voters, including 82,092 male and 73,598 female, will elect the MLA of Narnaul, the city which is a district headquarters. BJP candidate and former minister Om Prakash Yadav is a two-time MLA from Narnaul. He defeated JJP nominee Kamlesh Saini by a margin of over 14,715 votes. Kamlesh is at present the chairperson of the Narnaul Municipal Council and a strong contender for the BJP ticket from here.
Bureaucrat-turned-politician Abhe Singh Yadav emerged victorious for the second time from Nangal Choudhary constituency in the previous 2019 Assembly polls with a highest margin of 20,615 votes in the district. At present, he is serving as the Irrigation Minister in the state government. His ticket is believed to be certain this time too. There are a total of 1,65,047 voters in Nangal Chaudhary assembly constituency. Of these, 87,712 are male and 77,335 are female voters.
Meanwhile, the District Election Officer-cum- Deputy Commissioner, Monika Gupta, said a total of 772 polling booths had been set up in all four assembly constituencies of the district. Among them, 108 are urban polling booths and 664 are rural polling booths.
“A total 215 polling booths, including 14 in urban and 201 in rural areas, have been established in Ateli, 220 booths, including 19 in urban and 201 in rural, in Mahendragarh, 155 booths, including 68 in urban and 87 in rural areas, in Narnaul and 182 booths, including seven in urban and 175 in rural areas, in Nangal Choudhary Assembly constituencies,” she added.
