Sirsa, Oct 27 (PTI) The electioneering for the Ellenabad assembly seat bypoll ended on Wednesday evening with the three central agriculture laws dominating all other issues, including the lack of potable water and women colleges in the constituency.

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With the end of electioneering, the candidates will now limit their campaign to door-to-door visits for the next two days before the start of voting on October 30.

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Although a total of 19 candidates are in the fray, Abhay Chautala of the INLD, Pawan Beniwal of the Congress and Gobind Kanda of the BJP-JJP combine are being considered as key candidates.

A major part of the Ellenabad assembly constituency is rural with people mostly relying on agriculture. This is the first time that the agricultural laws have overshadowed all other issues.

The bypoll for the Ellenabad assembly seat was necessitated due to its sitting MLA Abhaya Chautala of INLD resigning from the assembly in January in protest against the three agricultural laws enacted by the Centre.

From the announcement of the poll schedule and till the campaigning stopped, the leaders argued on the agricultural laws, relegating other issues including broken roads, lack of drinking water, irrigation facilities and women's colleges for higher education to the backburner.

While Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) candidate Abhay Chautala's name was announced during a Kisan Panchayat, the ruling BJP-JJP party advised him not to enter in the fray until the agriculture laws were withdrawn.

On the other hand, the opposition Congress accused the Centre of weakening farmers financially under the guise of agricultural laws and MSP. The infamous Lakhimpur Kheri incident too figured prominently during the election campaign by opposition parties.

The farmers at times protested against the leaders of the ruling party, including BJP-JJP candidate Gobind Kanda and Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar by showing them black flags at different places, triggering some tension.

In this election, especially the reputation of Congress president Kumari Selja and INLD supremo Om Prakash Chautala is at stake.

Senior Congress leader Vivek Bansal, former Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, BJP state president Om Prakash Dhankhar, Chief Minister Manohar Lal, Deputy Chief Minister Dushyant Chautala, Vidhan Sabha Deputy Speaker Ranbir Gangwa, JJP founder Ajay Chautala, besides state government ministers and former ministers of various parties also campaigned for their respective party nominee.

Historically, the elections for the Ellenabad assembly seat have been held 14 times in which only the candidates of the party led by late Devi Lal were victorious.

Other parties have tried their best to break the magic of the Devi Lal family from this seat, but in vain.

Amid the farmers' protest against the three central laws, the bypoll for the Ellenabad assembly seat is being held for the first time amid deployment of 30 companies of central security force, five companies of the Rapid Action Force and Haryana Police.

Various intelligence agencies too have been deployed to ensure a peaceful voting.

On the last day of the campaign on Wednesday, farmers, labourers, traders conferences were organized under the banner of United Kisan Morcha, in towns of Nathusari Chopta and Ellenabad, in which many farmer groups participated.

In these conferences, Bharatiya Kisan Union spokesperson Rakesh Tikait asserted that the BJP-JJP government in the state is anti-farmers.

Due to the Modi government at the centre, three agricultural laws were made, which are not beneficial for the farming community, he added.

Tikait said the one who did something in favour of the farmers should be voted.

“To clear the illusion of the Modi government, we first gave it a medicine during the West Bengal assembly elections and we will administer it now again in Ellenabad,” Tikait said.

The third dose of the medicine will be given during the upcoming assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Punjab, he added.

Administrative officials said all preparations are afoot for the smooth conduct of polls.

In the triangular contest, Congress and BJP-JJP are up against Indian National Lok Dal's senior leader Abhay Singh Chautala, whose resignation in January over the farm laws issue had necessitated the bypolls to the rural constituency falling in Sirsa district.

While Abhay and his father O P Chautala have been campaigning in the constituency, the former MLA's elder brother and Jannayak Janta Party president Ajay Singh Chautala besides Deputy Chief Minister Dushyant Chautala sought votes for the JJP-backed BJP candidate.

The bypolls will be held on October 30 and the counting will take place on November 2.

Gobind Kanda, the brother of Haryana Lokhit Party chief and legislator Gopal Kanda, had joined the BJP recently and had been fielded by the BJP-JJP combine.

Pawan Beniwal, who had unsuccessfully contested the previous assembly poll against Abhay Chautala, had recently switched over from BJP to the Congress.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)