JJP's Digvijay Chautala Welcomes Wrestler Vinesh Phogat to Politics

JJP candidate Digvijay Chautala congratulated Vinesh Phogat for joining politics. He expressed confidence in JJP's success in the Dabwali assembly constituency and pledged to step down if Om Prakash Chautala entered the race. The alliance with ASP aims to contest all 90 constituencies in Haryana.

Jannayak Janta Party (JJP) candidate from the Dabwali assembly constituency, Digvijay Chautala, extended his congratulations to wrestler Vinesh Phogat for her entry into politics, marking a new chapter in her life. 'Vinesh is just like my sister. She has struggled a lot for the country. Twice she came very close to winning an Olympic medal. Once she was injured, and this time she got trapped in a controversy. We welcome her into politics and congratulate her on a new beginning. We hope she serves the people of Haryana,' Digvijay Chautala remarked.

Chautala expressed confidence in JJP's victory in the Dabwali assembly constituency. 'In the second round of campaigning, we witnessed huge gatherings. People from all walks of life have decided to vote for JJP. Even late at night, people are attending the campaign,' he stated.

He further added that if former Chief Minister Om Prakash Chautala from the Indian National Lok Dal filed his nomination, he would withdraw his candidature out of respect. Earlier, the JJP and Aazad Samaj Party (Kanshi Ram) alliance announced a list of 19 candidates for the upcoming Haryana Assembly elections, fielding Dushyant Chautala from Uchana and Digvijay Chautala from Dabwali.

The JJP has released a list of 15 candidates, while ASP named four candidates. JJP leader Dushyant Chautala will contest from Uchana, while Digvijay Chautala will fight from Dabwali. The alliance will contest all 90 Assembly constituencies in Haryana, with JJP competing on 70 seats and ASP on 20. The Congress also released its first list of 31 candidates, fielding former wrestler Vinesh Phogat from Julana.

In a significant boost to Congress, Olympian wrestlers Bajrang Punia and Vinesh Phogat joined the party earlier in the day. Bajrang Punia was appointed as the working president of All India Kisan Congress shortly after his induction. Punia secured bronze at the Tokyo Olympics, while Vinesh Phogat became the first woman wrestler to reach the Olympics final. Phogat announced her retirement from wrestling after being disqualified from the Paris Olympic Games for being overweight by about 100 gm in her 50-kg category weigh-in ahead of the gold medal match. Voting for the 90-member legislative assembly in Haryana is scheduled for October 5, with the last date for filing nominations on September 12. The counting of votes will take place on October 8.

In the 2019 elections, the BJP won 40 out of 90 seats and formed a coalition government with the JJP, which secured 10 seats, while the Congress garnered 31 seats. Earlier this year, the BJP-JJP alliance was dissolved.

(With inputs from agencies.)