Congress Party Announces Candidates for Haryana Assembly Elections 2024

The Congress Party has officially released its first list of candidates for the upcoming Haryana Assembly elections, scheduled for October 5, 2024. The list features 31 candidates, including notable names such as renowned wrestler Vinesh Phogat and former Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda.

Vinesh Phogat has been selected to contest from the Julana constituency, shortly after joining the Congress Party on September 6, 2024. Bhupinder Singh Hooda has been nominated from the Garhi Sampla-Kiloi seat, marking a significant move for the veteran politician.

State party president Udai Bhan will contest from the Hodal seat, while Mewa Singh has been allotted the Ladwa constituency. Other candidates include Bharat Bhushan Batra from Rohtak, Kuldeep Vats from Badli, Chiranjeev Rao from Rewari, and Neeraj Sharma from Faridabad NIT.

The candidates were finalized during a meeting of the party’s central election committee held in New Delhi, which was attended by senior leaders including Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and former party chief Sonia Gandhi.

Pehwani wrestler Vinesh Phogat, who gained fame as the first Indian woman to reach an Olympic final, joined the Congress amid significant media attention, following her role in protests against former Wrestling Federation of India president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh. The Congress aims to regain its footing in Haryana, where it has been out of power for a decade.

The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is also preparing for the elections, having released its first list of 67 candidates earlier. The electoral process will see the final date for nominations set for September 12, with nominations being scrutinized on September 13 and the last date for withdrawal being September 16.