Chandigarh, March 16: Polling for the two Rajya Sabha seats in Haryana concluded on Monday with 88 out of 90 members of the Legislative Assembly casting their votes. While the majority of the House participated in the electoral process, the Indian National Liberation Dal (INLD) chose to abstain, with its two legislators, Aditya Devilal and Arjun Chautala, remaining away from the polling booth.
Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini cast the first vote of the morning at the Haryana Vidhan Sabha premises. The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) saw full participation from its 48 members, including Minister Anil Vij, who arrived in a wheelchair to cast his ballot despite suffering from fractures in both feet. The BJP has fielded former MP Sanjay Bhatia as its primary candidate, while also supporting Independent candidate Satish Nandal.
The Congress party, which fielded Dalit activist Karamvir Boudh, also saw its 37 legislators participate in the session. The lawmakers arrived at the assembly together from the residence of the Leader of Opposition, Bhupinder Singh Hooda. Among the participants was wrestler-turned-politician Vinesh Phogat, who was accompanied by senior party leaders.
Although the voting process was described as largely peaceful, some procedural disagreements arose. Congress MLA BB Batra stated that Sports Minister Gaurav Gautam raised an objection regarding the confidentiality of a vote cast by a Congress member. Chief Electoral Officer Pankaj Aggarwal affirmed that this matter would be referred to the Election Commission for review.
The official count was scheduled to begin following clarification on the raised objections. All three candidates declared their optimism regarding the results, maintaining that they have the necessary support to secure the seats.
