Sonia Gandhi appoints ex-CM Bhupinder Hooda leader of Congress legislature party in Haryana
New Delhi: Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Saturday appointed former Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda leader of the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) in the state.
By virtue of being appointed the CLP leader, Hooda will be the Leader of Opposition in the newly-constituted assembly, AICC Haryana in-charge Ghulam Nabi Azad said at a press conference here.
A resolution was passed by the MLAs unanimously authorising Gandhi to elect the CLP leader and after being briefed by observer Madhusudan Mistri about the wishes of the MLAs, she has appointed Hooda as the CLP leader, he said.
Azad also hailed Hooda and Haryana Congress chief Kumari Selja for their efforts in the assembly polls, saying their combination had worked well for the party and despite the short time they got, they ensured a good performance by the Congress.
Ahead of the assembly election in Haryana, the Congress high command had replaced Ashok Tanwar with Selja as the state party chief and Choudhary as CLP leader with Hooda. Tanwar had later quit the party.
In the 90-member assembly, the strength of BJP is 40, its ally Jannayak Janta Party (JJP) 10, Congress 31, Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) one, Haryana Lokhit Party one and seven independents. The seven independents too had extended support to the BJP.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Ruckus outside counting centre in Mamata's constituency, TMC claims entry of car with BJP flag
Kolkata (PTI): The counting centre at West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's Bhabanipur assembly constituency witnessed a ruckus a day ahead of the counting of votes, with TMC workers alleging two cars bearing the BJP's flag were allowed entry to the compound where EVMs are kept.
The incident comes close on the heels of a four-hour-long sit-in by Banerjee in front of the same counting centre at the Sakhawat Memorial Girls School on Thursday night, alleging unauthorised entry of persons into the strongroom.
With the polling now over, the wrangling for power in West Bengal has turned into a battle of nerves between the incumbent TMC and the BJP. Workers and leaders of both parties have been keeping a steely gaze on the security of strongrooms across the state where the electoral fate of the candidates is sealed.
Despite expressing her confidence in a "landslide victory", Banerjee has repeatedly aired her apprehensions of "counting malpractice and EVM tampering ahead of the day of results".
On Sunday morning, TMC workers camping 100 metres from the counting centre alleged that two cars with BJP flags entered the premises and went near the strongroom.
"The CAPF personnel at the spot are not allowing any vehicle or person to enter the premises of the counting centre without valid identity proof. Then how come this car, which we have not seen in the past few days, was allowed entry? Once we protested, the central forces asked us to move 100 metres away," a TMC activist said.
The TMC claimed that while the police personnel posted there promised the vehicle would be removed from the spot, it remained there for some time.
A senior Election Commission official said the car was passing by the Harish Mukherjee Road, and after checking by security forces and police, it was allowed to leave as nothing objectionable was found in it.
On Thursday night, two counting centres, including one at Sakhawat Memorial Girls School in the city, witnessed high drama after TMC leaders alleged a lack of transparency and possible malpractice at the strongrooms housing sealed EVMs of the assembly polls, which concluded on April 29.
TMC leaders and candidates, Sashi Panja and Kunal Ghosh, held a sit-in outside the Khudiram Anushilan Kendra counting centre on Thursday evening, alleging unauthorised activities inside the strongroom amid the absence of TMC agents
In Howrah, TMC protested renovation work by the public works department at a place adjacent to the strongroom, and the EC stopped the work temporarily.
On Saturday, the ruling party filed a complaint with the poll panel, alleging unauthorised sorting of postal ballot covers at the EVM strongroom in Khudiram Anushilan Kendra.
Similar scenes were witnessed on Saturday outside the strongrooms at Asansol College in Paschim Bardhaman and the Barasat Government College in North 24 Parganas districts, where TMC workers held protests, alleging that CCTV cameras were switched off for several minutes.
The EC turned down all allegations, saying the surveillance cameras were working in an uninterrupted manner.
BJP spokesperson Sajal Ghosh told reporters that the people of Bengal were finding it "hilarious" that the TMC, "which used to win elections through unfair means and strongarm tactics" were now coming up with all sorts of "frivolous charges".
"Are they scared of losing?" he posed.
