Sirsa is a reserved constituency where the Congress’s former Minister and a Gandhi family favourite Selja Kumari is taking on the inveterate party hopper Ashok Tanwar of the BJP. An alumnus of Delhi’s Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), Tanwar began with the Congress, was in the Trinamool Congress and Aam Admi Party (AAP), and floated his own party before joining the BJP. He is a veteran of many battles, including one in Sirsa in the 2009 elections when he won the seat on a Congress ticket. Tanwar spoke to businessline on how his opponent is practically “hiding” in Sirsa because she and the dominant Congress family of former Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda do not get along and the Hoodas do not support her. Excerpts:

Q

You have changed four parties before joining the BJP. Is that a factor against you?

There is nothing like that. Chaudhary Charan Singh left his party and became Prime Minister. I have many other examples. Devi Lal ji is one. Similarly, Sharad Pawar, Himanta Biswa Sarma. All this is circumstantial. It is not necessary that you have to continue with ‘choron aur dacoit (thieves and dacoits)‘. Once you realise that the party you are in is full of ‘dhokebaj (betrayers, fraudsters)‘, they have deceived the country and are about to go to jail, should you continue to cling to them? Why should I suffer and go to jail with them without doing anything? Modiji today is working for development of the country and people like me who come from ordinary families are contributing towards that. My ideology is country first.

Q

Tell us about Sirsa, what are the issues here?

This is the general election, issues are of national importance. It’s about leadership, about who can take the country forward, about who can realise the dream of the nation, who can fulfill the wishes of 140 crore people. If you look into all these parameters, then only one name emerges – Narendra Modiji.

Q

So the election is between Modi and Seilja?

This is the election for the whole of the country. I’ll tell you in Haryana, Congress has no proper candidates. They are all fighting reluctantly… on all the ten seats.

Q

Don’t you think the BJP is perceived as an anti-farmer party, you yourself faced them when they blocked your car…

These people are paid to parade themselves. They are not actual farmers. In the garb of the farmers, they are activists of other parties who are losing ground. This is their last attempt to resurrect themselves.

Q

You are implying the farmers who blocked your car were put up by you opponent, Kumari Selja?

These people (Selja) came to Sirsa just 60 days before the election. They did nothing for this constituency. They first went to Ambala before coming here. The BJP will win all the ten seats with huge margins, and under the leadership of Modiji, we will cross 400.

Q

Isn’t Dushyant Chautala’s Jannayak Janta Party (JJP) s working as B team of the BJP to split Jat votes in Haryana?

People say anything during elections. JJP is a B team and some say even INLD is a B team of BJP. I say, there is no need for a B team. BJP itself is a strong party. We don’t need clutches.

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