Gurgaon LS polls: BJP's Rao Inderjit Singh eyeing third win, contesting against Congress' Raj Babbar

Gurgaon (Haryana) [India], May 22 : Haryana's Gurgaon, which is set to go to polls in the sixth phase of Lok Sabha elections on May 25, will witness the battle between Congress' Raj Babbar, who has been a three-time Lok Sabha Member of Parliament from Uttar Pradesh, and BJP's sitting MP and former Minister, Rao Inderjit Singh.
In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, Rao Inderjit Singh of BJP bagged 881,546 votes (60.9 per cent) while Congress' Capt. Ajay Singh garnered 495,290 votes (34.2 per cent). Bahujan Samaj Party's Chaudhary Rais Ahmad stood third with 26,756 votes (1.8 per cent).
In the 2014 Lok Sabha elections also, Rao Inderjit Singh of BJP secured victory by garnering 644,780 votes (48.8 per cent) while Zakir Hussain of Indian National Lok Dal secured 370,058 votes (28.0 per cent). Congress' Rao Dharam Pal secured 133,713 votes (10.1 per cent) and came third.
Both BJP and Congress are trying to woo the voters of Gurgaon by focusing on local issues.
On one hand, Raj Babbar said that he is not too concerned about national issues but local ones and that he is not contesting against any particular person or party but against apathy.
"I am not thinking about national issues but local. I have an old relationship with Gurgaon. Those who are coming from Delhi don't know that this place is the most backwards in the interiors... My fight is not with any person or party but with problems, I am contesting against apathy," Babbar said.
Taking to his official X handle, Babbar claimed that people are not receiving tap water. He said, "The major urban areas of Gurgaon are deprived of their basic amenities. The infrastructure is so inadequate that these areas lack piped water supply and suffer from inadequate drainage. These conditions clearly indicate the extent of injustice the people here have faced from the government."
Expressing confidence in the victory of Congress, Babbar claimed that his party would sweep the state. "Gurugram is where people from across the state of Haryana live. It is a city in which people from all over Haryana and people from everywhere can be seen... Gurugram means Haryana and it is also a cosmopolitan city. This is unique... Looking at their response, it seems that Congress Party is winning all 10 seats in the state," Babbar said.
On the other hand, Rao Inderjit Singh, taking to his official X handle, posted a Vision Document for the upcoming term (2024-29) which included Health services will start available in Rewari AIIMS; construction of Rapid Rail Transit System (RRTS) with the aim of providing safe, reliable and intercity mobility services; extension of Metro to Sector 9 of Old Gurgaon; connecting Mewat region to rail network through Orbital Rail Corridor with the aim of promoting overall development of Mewat region and connecting it to the mainstream; implementation of Punjab Land Conservation Act, 1900 for Green Gurgaon; to free Dharuhera-Bhiwadi from water logging by constructing water link; and clean Gurgaon Mission in which a strong system of sanitation and waste management to be developed in the entire Gurgaon Lok Sabha in a planned manner.
A General seat, the Gurgaon Parliamentary constituency includes nine assembly constituencies of Gurgaon, Badshapur, Sohna, Pataudi, Bawal, Rewari, Nuh, Ferozepur Jhirka and Punhana.
Haryana has 10 Lok Sabha constituencies, including Ambala, Kurukshetra, Sirsa, Hisar, Karnal, Sonipat, Rohtak, Bhiwani-Mahendragarh, Gurgaon and Faridabad. Voting in Gurgaon is scheduled for May 25.
In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won 7 out of 10 Lok Sabha seats whereas Congress could not win any seat in the state.