Gurgaon Lok Sabha Seat Witnessing Intense Battle Between Local and Outsider Candidates

The Gurgaon Lok Sabha constituency sees a local-outsider contest between Congress's Raj Babbar and BJP's Rao Inderjit Singh. Babbar, despite being an outsider, claims family ties to Haryana, while Singh highlights his local connection and development record. Babbar promises change and addresses infrastructural issues, while Singh appeals to voters to re-elect an experienced leader. Babbar's candidature marks a departure from the Congress's usual reliance on Yadav candidates in the region. Singh, a former Congress MP who switched to the BJP, emphasizes his contributions to Gurgaon's growth over the past decade.

The Gurgaon Lok Sabha constituency in Haryana is witnessing a local versus outsider contest after the Congress nominated actor-turned-politician Raj Babbar from the seat against sitting MP Rao Inderjit Singh of the ruling BJP. In his campaign, Babbar highlights his Haryana connect to beat the 'outsider' jibe while Singh appeals to voters to again go for the ''tried and tested''.

According to the Congress leader, his family had arrived in Ambala after the country's Partition.

''Mein bahari nahin hoon (I am not an outsider),'' the 71-year-old former MP says, adding that he has relatives in Gurugram and Faridabad too.

Singh has been targeting Babbar, saying he is an 'outsider'. Babbar's candidature was announced by the Congress on April 30. Congress leader and former Haryana minister Ajay Singh Yadav was also a strong probable from the seat.

Making a stop at Badshahpur under Gurgaon constituency while campaigning recently, Babbar appeals to people to vote for a change and elect him this time. ''Gurugram mein iss baar badlaav ki bari hai.'' ''Raj Babbar will create his place in the hearts of people,'' says the actor-politician, who began his campaign after a visit to the Sheetla Mata temple in Gurgaon last week.

Targeting the BJP, Babbar says that despite generating a major chunk of revenue for Haryana, Gurugram city does not have proper civic infrastructure and the situation turns bad during the monsoon season.

On the other hand, BJP's Rao Inderjit Singh (74), a five-time parliamentarian, of which he has served as Gurgaon MP on three occasions (2009-till present), pitches himself as a leader who is local and understands people's needs and aspirations.

He is banking on the development works carried out in Gurugram during his tenure as MP as well as his local connect.

During his campaign, Singh tells the people, ''Mein Gurgaon vasiyo ka parkha hua hoon (I am your tried and tested leader). I have always raised the voice of my constituents. The strength which you give me I use that for raising your voice.'' ''Gurgaon and India are progressing. We want to bring Narendra Modi as Prime Minister again and take our country on a path of progress,'' he says.

Seeking reelection, Singh, son of former Haryana chief minister late Rao Birender Singh, highlights the works done during the past 10 years in Gurugram, saying these will be further accelerated.

Two decades ago Gurgaon used to be a small town, but today it is contributing 70-75 per cent revenue to the state, Singh says.

After Gurgaon parliamentary constituency was carved out in 2008 and first elections for the seat were held in 2009, it was for the first time that the Congress went with a candidate who does not belong to the Yadav community, which has a sizable presence in south Haryana.

Singh, a prominent Ahir leader, who joined the BJP after switching over from the Congress in 2014, had represented Gurgaon in 2009 as Congress MP.

Prior to this, Singh has also served as MP twice from Mahendragarh, which is Bhiwani-Mahendragarh constituency from 2009.

Among the development works, Singh highlights the inauguration (by Prime Minister Narendra Modi) of the 19km-long Haryana section of the Dwarka Expressway that will cut travel time between Delhi and Gurgaon, inauguration of All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS)-Rewari, and connecting old Gurgaon with metro, among others.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)