The counting of votes for the Haryana Assembly elections will be held on Tuesday starting at 8 am, Chief Electoral Officer Pankaj Agarwal said on Monday.  About 67.90 per cent of 2.03 crore voters in the State cast their ballot in the October 5  Assembly election, a slight drop from the 68 per cent voter turnout in the previous election in 2019. The key parties in the fray are the BJP, the Congress, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), INLD-BSP and JJP-Azad Samaj Party. However, most seats are likely to see a direct fight between the BJP and the Congress. The ruling BJP is confident of retaining power for a third term while the Congress, which has been out of power for 10 years, is more than hopeful of making a comeback when results are announced. The Chief Electoral officer said that all preparations, including security arrangements, have been completed for the counting process. A three-tier security arrangement has been made at counting venues. Agarwal further said that as many as 93 counting centres have been set up for 90 assembly constituencies in 22 districts of the state. Two counting centres each have been set up for the Badshahpur, Gurugram, and Pataudi assembly constituencies, while one counting centre each has been established for the remaining 87 assembly constituencies, where the counting will take place. To monitor the counting process, 90 counting observers have also been appointed by the Election Commission of India. Agarwal said that the counting will begin at 8 am on October 8. Postal ballots will be counted first, followed by the counting of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) after 30 minutes. Accurate information on each round of counting will be uploaded in a timely manner. On the day of the counting, the strong rooms will be opened in the presence of candidates, their authorized representatives, Returning Officers (ROs) andAssistant Returning Officers (AROs), and ECI observers, with videography conducted. Furthermore, mobile phones will not be allowed inside the counting centres, the CEO added. Talking to reporters, DGP Shatrujeet Kapur said that every aspect of the counting process has been carefully studied to ensure a smooth operation. Senior officials from Haryana Police will monitor the situation, and strict action will be taken against any attempts to disrupt law and order. He further said that the comprehensive security arrangements have been made for the counting. A total of 30 companies of Central Armed Police Forces have been deployed at 93 counting centres. The counting centres have been put under a three-tier security cover. Central security forces have been deployed in the innermost security cover. After that, state armed police and district police personnel will be deployed in the outermost cover. Around 12,000 police personnel are on duty at the counting centres across the state, DGP added. Both BJP and Congress claim to form the next Government The election in Haryana was the first major direct contest between the BJP and the Congress following the Lok Sabha polls, and the winner would use the result here to build a narrative in their favour in other states where polls are due over the next few months. Rejecting the exit poll results, Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini has claimed his party BJP will form the government for a third time with the full majority on October 8. He said when results are announced on October 8, Congress will blame Electronic Voting Machines. On the other hand, Congress leader and former Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, a frontrunner for the chief ministers post if his party wins, exuded confidence of a comfortable majority. On BJP leaders claiming that their party will return to power, Hooda had earlier stated, What else will BJP say? They will come to know once results are out. The INLD-BSP alliance has also claimed that it will form the next government once results are declared, while JJP leader Dushyant Chautala has exuded confidence that his alliance will get good numbers. AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal, whose party contested Haryana polls on its own, has been claiming that no government in Haryana can be formed without the support of his AAP. Following exit polls predicting a strong Congress performance in Haryana, senior Congress leader and Sirsa MP Kumari Selja expressed confidence that the party will win more than 60 seats. She attributed this to significant anti-incumbency against the BJP, particularly among weaker sections who felt marginalized. Selja highlighted Rahul Gandhis Bharat Jodo Yatra as a turning point and noted that the decision on the Chief Minister would be made by the party high command. In response to exit poll predictions for the Haryana assembly elections, Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) candidate Abhay Singh Chautala dismissed the projections, asserting that exit polls are unreliable and that the actual results on October 8 will surprise many. Chautala referenced past discrepancies between exit polls and election outcomes, citing examples from Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. Similarly, BJP candidate Anil Vij downplayed the importance of the exit polls, claiming that ground realities differ and suggesting a decline in public support for Congress in certain areas. The ruling BJP has been saying that its return to office will be powered by its record on good governance, transparent administration, equitable development, jobs on merit, welfare initiatives for all sections including farmers, poor and the weak. However, the Congress and other opposition parties have dubbed the BJP government a failure, and targeted it on issues related to farmers, unemployment, Agniveer, inflation, law and order, and others. Furthermore, the prominent among those in the fray are Chief Minister Saini (Ladwa), Leader of Opposition Hooda (Garhi Sampla-Kiloi), INLDs Abhay Chautala (Ellenabad), JJPs Dushyant Chautala (Uchana Kalan), BJPs Anil Vij (Ambala Cantt), Capt Abhimanyu (Narnaund), O P Dhankar (Badli), AAPs Anurag Dhanda (Kalayat) and Congress Vinesh Phogat (Julana). From Tosham seat, former MP Shruti Choudhry of BJP and Anirudh Chaudhary, both cousins, are contesting. From Dabwali, Devi Lals grandson Aditya Devi Lal, an INLD candidate, is taking on JJPs Digvijay Singh Chautala, great-grandson of the former deputy prime minister. The BJP has fielded former chief minister late Bhajan Lals grandson Bhavya Bishnoi from the Adampur segment of Hisar while its nominee from Ateli in Mahendragarh is Arti Rao, whose father Rao Inderjit Singh is a Union minister. Among the Independents are Savitri Jindal (Hisar), Ranjit Chautala (Rania) and Chitra Sarwara (Ambala Cantt). Taking on Dushyant from Uchana is Congress Brijendra Singh, son of former Union minister Birender Singh.

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