With an eye on next year’s Lok Sabha and assembly elections, Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda is expected to make some big ticket announcements at a show-of-strength rally on Sunday.
The rally in Gohana near Sonepat, will mark the completion of the Congress government’s ninth consecutive year in office. The rally will be watched closely by the opposition parties.
In an attempt to woo young voters, Hooda is expected to announce 80,000 jobs for the youth. Around 65,000 posts are lying vacant in various government departments, boards and corporations for more than two years, and as a first step, the Congress had recently lifted a ban imposed on fresh recruitment.
Hooda is also expected to announce the enhancement of the state government’s social security scheme for old aged persons. Under the old age pension scheme, an elderly person is given a pension of Rs 750 per month.
Similarly, he is likely to announce a healthcare plan on the pattern of the ongoing free medicine scheme in Rajasthan. “But ours will be on a larger scale,” a state Congress functionary said.
Hooda’s rally comes days after the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) of Om Prakash Chautala held a public meeting at Kurukshetra on November 1 to celebrate the 100th birth anniversary of former deputy prime minister Devi Lal.
{{/usCountry}}Hooda’s rally comes days after the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) of Om Prakash Chautala held a public meeting at Kurukshetra on November 1 to celebrate the 100th birth anniversary of former deputy prime minister Devi Lal.
{{/usCountry}}The presence of its senior leader Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi indicated the BJP’s move to keep open its alliance options in Haryana.
It has already firmed up its alliance with the Haryana Janhit Congress of Kuldeep Bishnoi, a staunch rival of Chautalas.