The Haryana Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has requested the Election Commission to postpone the assembly elections scheduled for October 1, citing long holidays as the reason which might impact the voter turnout. While Indian National Lok Dal (INLD)’s Abhay Chautala spoke in favour deferring the poll dates, opposition parties, including Congress and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), criticized the move, calling BJP’s reasoning a ‘childish argument’ and that they are scared of being defeated.
A Haryana BJP leader stated that the party’s state chief, Mohan Lal Badoli, sent the request to the Election Commission.
Varinder Garg from the BJP’s election management committee explained that multiple holidays around October 1, might lead people to take a long vacation, impacting the voter turnout on the polling day. Badoli also mentioned that the Bishnoi community’s participation in a religious event on October 2 could further impact voting.
Congress leader Bhupinder Singh Hooda and the AAP criticized the BJP’s request, suggesting it reflects the party’s fear of losing.
Bhupinder Hooda’s son and Rohtak MP Deepender Hooda posted on X(in Hindi) that the BJP is clearly anticipating a loss, which is why it’s resorting to such ‘childish arguments’. The party has no issues to address, no work or achievements to present to the public, and lacks candidates to distribute tickets. This is why they are attempting to delay the elections, using holidays as an excuse.
हरियाणा बीजेपी ने चुनाव आयोग को चुनाव टालने के लिए पत्र लिखा है, जो यह दर्शाता है कि बीजेपी चुनाव से किस कदर घबराई हुई है। अपनी हार सामने देख सत्ताधारी पार्टी द्वारा बचकाने तर्क दिये जा रहे हैं। क्योंकि उसके पास न कोई मुद्दा है, न जनता को बताने लायक कोई काम या उपलब्धि और न ही… pic.twitter.com/f5D83iOehp
— Deepender S Hooda (@DeependerSHooda) August 24, 2024
AAP also said on X that if the BJP had performed well in the state, it wouldn’t be asking for a postponement of the polls. It asserted that this time, the BJP’s defeat is inevitable.
