Tears Turn to Smiles as 'BJP Reject' Sartaj Singh Gets Congress Ticket Within Minutes
Bhopal: Minutes after senior BJP leader Sartaj Singh switched over to the Congress after he was denied a ticket by the BJP, he found a mention in the grand old party’s fifth list for the Madhya Pradesh elections.
Singh, who was the Union minister for health and family welfare in the 13-day Vajpayee government in 1998, has held several portfolios in the Madhya Pradesh government in the past. However, he was shunted out of the cabinet in 2016 on the basis of the 75-plus age criteria and had been at odds with the BJP since then.
A politician with a strong grassroots connect, Singh defeated Congress veteran late Arjun Singh in the 1998 Lok Sabha polls from Hoshangabad.
Singh, who represents Seoni-Malwa at present, was adamant on a ticket from the seat again but was refused. An upset Singh on Thursday went to Hoshangabad and was seen in tears after the third list of the BJP was announced.
On being ignored by the BJP, the 78-year-old said justice was denied to seniors like him. “I won’t die suffocating at home. I will take to the battlefield and die like a martyr,” he said.
Soon, he announced his decision to join the Congress. Barely half-an-hour later, the grand old party announced its list, naming Singh as the candidate from Hoshangabad against assembly speaker Dr Sitasharan Sharma.
Sources said the Congress, which did not name anyone from Seoni Malwa, was looking for a formidable opponent to field against Sharma.
After the BJP announced that it would field Babulal Gaur’s daughter-in-law Krishna from Govindpura in Bhopal, the Congress too named senior corporator Girish Sharma from Govindpura. A confident Sharma had already filed his nomination on Thursday.
The party also nominated Naresh Gyanchandani, a prominent Sindhi community leader from Huzur seat in Bhopal. Shivjeet Singh has been given a ticket from Panna where the BJP is still in a dilemma over denying ticket to minister Kusum Mehdele.
Basilal Verma, who was earlier nominated from Devsar, has been replaced by Rambhajan Saket. The Manpur seat, from where Tilak Raj Singh was named earlier, now shows ‘pending for candidature’. Farmer union leader Umrao Singh Gurjar has been named from Manada in Neemuch, which witnessed farmers’ agitation in 2017.
In its latest list, the party named 15 candidates, replaced one and rolled back one name.
The Congress also suffered a minor jolt on Thursday after Nitin Chaturvedi, son of senior party leader Satyavrat Chaturvedi, filed nomination from Rajnagar as a Samajwadi Party candidate. “Whatever mistakes the Congress made earlier are being repeated for the past 15 years and we have decided to approach the public’s court,” an upset Chaturvedi said.
Courtesy: www.news18.com
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Metro ridership in Haryana sees over 13 pc rise in 2025-26
Chandigarh (PTI): Haryana's urban transit system witnessed a strong growth in 2025-26, with metro ridership registering a robust 13.55 per cent increase, the state government said in a statement on Thursday.
The progress was reviewed in the 64th board meeting of Haryana Mass Rapid Transport Corporation (HMRTC) chaired by Chief Secretary Anurag Rastogi.
Between April 2025 and February 2026, the metro network recorded over 1.74 crore passengers, compared to 1.53 crore in the corresponding period the previous year.
July recorded the highest monthly growth at 22.93 per cent, while all months showed consistent positive trends.
Financial performance has also remained strong, with fare revenue rising 12.64 per cent till January 2026, the statement said.
Non-fare revenue surged by 108 per cent, driven by effective monetisation of station spaces, advertisements and commercial activities, resulting in an operating surplus for Rapid Metro.
Further initiatives, including the auction of station naming rights and additional advertisement sites, are expected to strengthen HMRTC's financial position, the statement said.
Appreciating the performance, Rastogi stated that the consistent rise in ridership and revenue reflects the success of Haryana's integrated transport strategy, rising commuter confidence and a clear shift towards public transport.
HMRTC Managing Director Chander Shekhar Khare said that, alongside operational gains, the state is making steady progress on an ambitious pipeline of metro and regional transit projects.
Metro connectivity from Gurugram Sector 56 to Panchgaon is under active consideration, with Haryana State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited studying the Detailed Project Report (DPR) and layout plan, and finalising a depot location in Sector 36A near Sihi village, he said.
The Gurugram-Faridabad Namo Bharat corridor has achieved a key milestone, with alignment and station locations finalised and approved by the Haryana government. The National Capital Region Transport Corporation is preparing the DPR, he added.
Similarly, the Delhi-Kundli metro extension is proposed to be placed before the Haryana Cabinet for approval.
The 136.3-kilometre Delhi-Panipat-Karnal RRTS Corridor has also progressed, with the revised DPR submitted for financial concurrence ahead of Haryana Cabinet consideration.
Within Gurugram, DPR preparation has been approved for key intra-city corridors, including the 17.09-kilometre Bhondsi-Subhash Chowk-Rajeev Chowk-Sohna Chowk Railway Station corridor, enhancing connectivity along Sohna Road, Khare said.
