Amit Shah’s Jind rally a massive flop, says Congress; releases aerial video

BJP National President Amit Shah on Thursday addressed a 'Yuva Hunkar Rally' at Pandu Pindara village in Jind district of Haryana, claiming that the party had provided a corruption-free and stable government in Haryana and the country. Shah released photos of the rally showing the crowd that had gathered.

However, Congress spokesperson and Haryana Congress leader Randeep Surjewala released an aerial video of the rally, which purports to show that the mobilisation for the rally fell far below the BJP’s expectations. Vast swathes of carpets and seats appeared empty. The video can be seen below:

Thousands of security personnel, including Haryana Police and para-military forces, kept a strict watch at the rally venue, areas surrounding it and Jind district and nearby areas. BJP ministers and legislators arrived at the venue on motorcycles. The state BJP had asked workers to come to the rally on bikes.

The opposition Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) had threatened to show black flags to the BJP president over the issue of non-construction of the SYL (Sutlej-Yamuna Link) canal and failure of the BJP to fulfil the promises made to the people of Haryana.

The police detained INLD leaders and workers in some districts to prevent them from reaching the rally venue, about 200 km from here.

Haryana Congress President Ashok Tanwar was also detained in Jind town as he was planning to hold a protest.