MC Elections: Tension within Congress as Setia announces list of Sirsa candidates

Monday marked the final day for nominations in the Sirsa Municipal Corporation elections, with candidates from Congress, BJP, AAP, and JJP filing their papers for the chairperson’s post. The day also saw local Congress MLA Gokul Setia announce his list of ward candidates, surprising many local Congress leaders. The move has led to tensions within the party, with some Congress members unhappy with Setia’s decision. Meanwhile, in the backdrop of the election, the Haryana Lokhit Party (HLP) led by Gopal Kanda seems to have faded into the background, overshadowed by the BJP, while the Congress appears to be under pressure from within.

MLA criticises ‘Congress officer’, praises CM

• In a bold statement in Sirsa, Congress MLA Gokul Setia termed an Executive Officer a “Congress officer” and held him responsible for corruption in the area
• Setia expressed no hesitation in making this claim, stating, “I have no doubts about this officer’s role in corruption”
• He also commented on the new Chief Minister, saying that though the CM had only been in office for three months, he was doing a good job, and Setia had no reason to criticise him
• Setia made these remarks while speaking to reporters after filing the nomination of Congress candidate Jaswinder Kaur for the Municipal Council election at the Sirsa's Mini-Secretariat on Monday
• He mentioned that he had prepared a detailed report on the city’s problems during his first 100 days in office and would work on finding solutions to them

A total of nine applications have been received for the chairman’s post, including seven candidates and two covering candidates. Meanwhile, the INLD party, which had remained completely quiet until now, has nominated Om Parkash as their candidate for the chairman’s post.

BJP candidate for the chairperson, Shanti Swaroop Valimiki, was accompanied by key leaders such as Minister Ranbir Gangwa, Rajya Sabha MP Subhash Barala, former MLA Dura Ram, and Govind Kanda when he filed his nomination. Congress candidate Jaswinder Kaur filed her nomination alongside MLA Gokul Setia. Aam Aadmi Party’s candidate Kavita Nagar, as well as Praveen Turkiya (Lucky Chaudhary) from the Jananayak Janata Party (JJP), also entered the race, along with Independent candidate Rajender Raju.

The Sirsa Municipal elections are significant as the chairperson will be elected from the Scheduled Caste category, and 32 ward members will be elected as well. The voting will take place on March 2, with the results set to be announced on March 12. The main competition is expected between the BJP and the Congress, as the BJP currently holds power in Haryana, while the area is represented by the Congress MPs and an MLA.

Congress has fielded Jaswinder Kaur, an MA, MPhil graduate and housewife, as their chairperson candidate. Jaswinder’s mother, Sukhwinder Kaur, had previously served as the chairperson of the Sirsa Municipal Corporation from 1995 to 2000. However, her candidacy has led to some internal conflict within the Congress, with opposing factions expressing their displeasure. The JJP, led by former MP Ajay Chautala and his son Dushyant Chautala, has nominated Parveen Kumar Turkiya, also known as Lucky Chaudhary, for the chairperson’s post. Lucky’s nomination was filed with the support of key party leaders. He will contest using the JJP’s election symbol, the key.

The Aam Aadmi Party has nominated Kavita Nagar, an active member and housewife, as its candidate. Kavita had previously shown interest in running for the state Assembly elections from Kalanwali.

BJP confident of victory

BJP candidate Shanti Swaroop filed his nomination papers for the Sirsa Municipal Council president election on Monday. He was accompanied by Haryana Cabinet Minister Ranbir Gangwa, Rajya Sabha MP Subhash Barala, senior BJP leader Gobind Kanda, and local BJP leaders. After the filing, Gangwa and Barala expressed confidence that the BJP would win not just in Sirsa, but in the local bodies elections across Haryana.

INLD’s chairperson candidate wealthiest

Om Prakash

• All candidates for the post of chairperson are wealthy, but their assets vary greatly.
• Among them, Om Prakash, the candidate of the INLD, is the richest.
• He has total movable assets of Rs 12,67,147 and his wife, Savitri, has movable assets worth Rs 9,61,000
• In addition, Om Prakash owns immovable property worth Rs 42,30,000, while Savitri owns property worth Rs 86,55,000. Om Prakash also owns a car

Jaswinder Kaur

• The Congress candidate, Jaswinder Kaur, has the least wealth. Despite her husband in a government job, her affidavit shows that his total movable property is only Rs 5,000.
• She holds Rs 25,000 in cash and Rs 5,40,000 in movable assets.

Shanti Swarup Valmiki

• The BJP candidate, Shanti Swarup Valmiki, has Rs 1,45,800 in cash, while his wife Meenu Bhatti

  has Rs 1,30,300.

• His total movable assets amount to Rs 3,87,925, while Meenu’s assets are worth Rs 4,92,708.
• Shanti Swarup does not own any immovable property, but his wife owns property worth Rs 5,00,000.
• Swarup owns an Activa scooter and a gun.

Kavita Nagar

• The AAP candidate, Kavita Nagar, has Rs 9,00,000 in movable assets and Rs 3,30,000 in immovable assets.
• Her husband owns Rs 3,50,000 in movable assets but has no immovable property.