New Delhi: Wrestler-turned-politician Vinesh Phogat might contest the upcoming assembly elections in Haryana from the Julana constituency, amid reports that her name has been finalised from the seat. Both Vinesh and Bajrang Punia joined Congress earlier today at the AICC headquarters in Delhi. Reports also suggest that Bajrang will not be standing for elections.
‘Candidates for 12 more seats also finalised’
The decision was taken during the Congress’ Central Election Committee meeting on Friday. Candidates for 12 more seats have also been finalised. The party has thus far announced names for 71 out of 90 seats in Haryana.
Amid discussions about a potential alliance between the INDIA bloc constituents Congress and AAP, the finalisation of names for the remaining seats may take some time. The major points of contention between the parties are the number of seats and specific constituencies. While AAP is requesting 10 seats, Congress is reluctant to offer more than 4-5 seats.
Earlier, speaking to the media after joining the grand old party, Vinesh said that her fight for women wrestlers would continue.
Why the Julana constituency?
Julana is a Jat-dominated seat. In the 2019 polls, Amarjeet Dhanda from the Jannayak Janta Party (JJP) won the seat. From 2009 to 2019, it was held by Parminder Singh of the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD).
Vinesh’s husband, Somveer, hails from Bakhta Khera village in Julana. Reports suggest that her in-laws have already started touring the villages in the constituency to garner support for her. Notably, Congress has lost this seat on the previous three occasions. In the last election, the Congress candidate did not even secure 10% of the votes.
Vinesh’s name was also linked with the Dadri assembly seat, where her ancestral village Balali is located. In the 2019 Dadri elections, Vinesh’s cousin Babita Phogat contested as BJP candidate and there were rumours that the Phogat sisters might face each other in this election for the same seat.