The Hindu : Big turnout at Bansi Lal rally

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Mar 01, 2004

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Big turnout at Bansi Lal rally

By Rajesh Ahuja

JIND (HARYANA), FEB.29. The massive turnout at the public rally here today came as a big morale booster for the Haryana Vikas Party (HVP) led by Bansi Lal. Partymen patted themselves on the back for the unprecedented "revival'' of the party which managed to win only two Assembly seats in the 2000 elections.

Haryana watchers recalled similar turnouts at the rallies of the HVP in Jind and Rohtak in 1995 during the heydays of the Congress regime which was converted into a mandate for the party and then ally, the BJP, both in the Assembly and the Lok Sabha elections. In fact, all roads leading to Jind were packed with vehicles carrying HVP workers who sang and danced their way to the HUDA grounds here.

The HVP leaders are enthused by this public support which has come barely two days after the whirlwind road show of the Congress President, Sonia Gandhi, in Haryana.

Mr. Bansi Lal asserted, in an interaction with mediapersons shortly before addressing the rally, that HVP was numero uno and it would not only win all the 10 Lok Sabha seats but also stage a comeback in the Assembly elections as the people were fed up with the `misrule' of the Chautala regime and were wary of the Congress and the BJP which stood `exposed.'

Mr. Bansi Lal made it clear that his party would have no truck with the BJP. He charged that the BJP had ditched him in 1999 by pulling down his Government even though he had given prominent posts to the BJP legislators.

There was no question of renewing the tie-up with the BJP and the HVP was fully competent and ready to contest the polls on its own. He reiterated that the party would not extend support to the Congress in the emerging scenario as long as a "person of foreign origin'' headed it. He said he had no personal enmity with Ms. Sonia Gandhi but it was his principled stand that no `foreigner' should hold position of power in India. He also emphasised that his party could consider lending support to that party or group which would look after Haryana's interests genuinely. He hinted that a third front could emerge as a fall out of the poll verdict. While categorically ruling out that he would be contesting the upcoming Lok Sabha polls, he asserted that the list of HVP candidates would be announced in due course of time.

At the rally, Mr. Bansi Lal made several promises which, he said, would be fulfilled when the party regained power in the State. These include round-the-clock electricity to all consumers, withdrawal of tax on houses used for personal occupation and completion of remaining portion of the Satluj Yamuna Link Canal.

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Big turnout at Bansi Lal rally