In the run up to the forthcoming polls in the state, the Congress has come up with speedy preparations Leader of Opposition and former Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda said he is neither retired nor tired and that he will fight tooth and nail against this government to take Haryana on the path of development and prosperity. Addressing the Jan Aakrosh Rally of Congress organized in Baroda constituency today in bone-chilling winter, Hooda sought the support of the public for change. People at the rally raised both their hands and assured of full support. Seeing the excitement and enthusiasm of the huge crowd gathered in the rally organized by MLA Induraj Narwal at the Government Model Sanskriti Senior Secondary School grounds of Baroda, an elated Hooda said that he had heard about the fire test, but today he saw the winter test.
“There has already been a change of power in the minds of the people of Haryana. Elections are just a formality,” he said and called for ousting the BJP-JJP government of Haryana from power. Congress party MLAs, MPs, former ministers, former MLAs, former party presidents including Mahila Congress, Seva Dal, Youth Congress, NSUI, officials of frontal organizations, senior leaders, workers of the districts and a large number of local people were present in the Jan Aakrosh rally. Expressing his pain, Hooda said Haryana was number 1 in per capita income, per capita investment and job creation before 2014, and is today number 1 in unemployment and crime. He said that during the previous Congress government, they got power plants set up in the state, built railways, roads, metro, waived electricity bills worth Rs 1600 crore with a single pen, employed 11000 sanitation workers, but the present government has also taken the approved rail coach factory of Gohana to outside the state. “Today 2 lakh government posts are lying vacant in Haryana. Permanent jobs were converted into temporary jobs through Skill Corporation, in which there is neither job nor pension. The same thing happened in Agniveer Yojana, in which an 18-year-old youth would be recruited and after 4 years, at the age of 22, he would return home after becoming unemployed,” he said.
The former Chief Minister said the wind of change is blowing in favor of Congress in Haryana and Congress government is going to be formed in the state. “We do what we say. When the Congress government is formed in Haryana, every elderly person will be given a pension of Rs 6000 per month. When our government comes, we will give LPG cylinders to housewives for Rs 500. Every family will be given 300 units of electricity free of cost. We will implement the old pension scheme of employees. We will re-implement the 100 square yard free plot scheme and provide 2-room houses to the poor,” he stated.
“This government has not fulfilled even one of its guarantees. Today the debt on Haryana has increased to more than Rs 4 lakh crore. Atrocities against Dalits and women have increased in the state. According to the Social Security Index released by the government, no one is safe in Haryana,” he said.
Enumerating the work done during the time of Hooda government of Congress, he said that Hooda government built 81 kms of metro, thermal plans, rail lines and national highways. “Electricity bills worth Rs 1600 crore waived off. Cooperative loans worth Rs 2200 crores were waived off, loans of Harijan and Backward Corporations worth Rs 485 crores were waived off. Plots of 100 square yards were given to 3.82 lakh poor families. The government gave scholarship to 22 lakh children,” he said and added that winds of change are blowing in the state and the entire state is saying that Bhupinder Singh Hooda and Deepender Hooda are coming.