BJP, Hooda responsible for votes declared invalid: Chautala

INLD leader Abhay Chautala today alleged that BJP and Congress leader B S Hooda were responsible for the 14 votes being declared invalid in yesterday's Rajya Sabha election in the state while Hooda demanded a thorough inquiry by the Election Commission.
Chautala, who is also Leader of Opposition in Haryana Assembly alleged that the ruling BJP and "Hooda and company" were responsible for the conspiracy which led to the votes being declared as invalid, paving way for Subhash Chandra's win as Independent candidate backed by BJP.
He alleged that horse trading had taken place in the polls and "democracy has been murdered".

Chautala pointed fingers at BJP MLA Assem Goel and Independent MLA Jai Prakash, both of whom have trashed the charges as baseless and even threatened to take legal action.
Chautala also demanded registration of a criminal case in the matter.
BJP, Congress and Jai Prakash trashed Chautala's allegations.

"It's a baseless charge, Abhay Chautala should immediately apologise or else I will file a defamation case against him for maligning my reputation," Prakash said
Hooda, who came under sharp attack from INLD and losing candidate R K Anand, today demanded a thorough inquiry by the Election Commission, including a forensic examination of the pens with which the votes were cast.

"Never before I have heard or even imagined that conspiracy of this level could be hatched. I can say with firm belief that a conspiracy was hatched to enable victory of BJP-backed candidate (Subhash Chandra)," Hooda told reporters here.
"I have demanded that the matter needs to be probed. R K Anand should file an election petition," Hooda said.
Tanwar demanded that the elections to two Rajya Sabha seats from the state be countermanded and also demanded a thorough inquiry into the allegations that votes cast by party legislators had been marked by a pen other than the one which they were supposed to use.

Both Congress and INLD have pointed fingers at each other after 14 votes, which according to Haryana's Education Minister Ram Bilas Sharma and Leader of Opposition Abhay Chautala were of the Congress, were found to be invalid.