RS invalid votes row: Hooda accuses BJP of conspiring, wants EC probe

Congress will approach the Election Commission on Monday to protest against the “misuse of government machinery” in the Rajya Sabha elections for two seats in Haryana which led to independent candidate R K Anand, backed by the party, losing the poll.

Congress will approach the Election Commission on Monday to protest against the “misuse of government machinery” in the Rajya Sabha elections for two seats in Haryana which led to independent candidate R K Anand, backed by the party, losing the poll.

Former Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, who is currently in the line of fire after independent R.K. Anand’s defeat in the Rajya Sabha polls, on Sunday accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of ‘conspiring’ to defeat the Congress’ supported candidate

Read: RS polls: BJP wins 12 seats, Congress 6; Opposition still rules House

Asked whether the party suspected internal sabotage in the elections including by former chief minister B S Hooda, party general secretary B K Hariprasad replied in the negative.

Hariprasad alleged that there was deliberate fraud in the election by switching the pen meant for marking the votes so as to make the Congress votes invalid.

The votes of 14 Congress MLAs were declared invalid leading to the loss of Anand who was otherwise expected to win.

Read: Cross-voting, arrests mar polling for 27 Rajya Sabha seats in 7 states

On his part, Hooda said there has been a “big conspiracy” and the truth should come out. “A probe by the Election Commission should be sought. This truth will come out in 24 hours,” he said in Chandigarh.

Hariprasad had on Saturday said that prima facie he saw a conspiracy from the government’s side and said the party will find out the truth. “We will fight it politically and legally,” he had said.

Anand’s defeat came as a bolt from the blue for the Congress and its high command, which was confident that its strategy to trounce BJP-backed media baron and independent candidate Subhash Chandra would succeed.

On Friday, the Congress Legislature Party at its meeting had authorised party chief Sonia Gandhi to decide on who to vote for and she had directed voting in favour of Anand.

Hooda was not initially in favour of Anand as he was backed by INLD, the rival party in Haryana.