Hooda takes dig at Chautala's jail oath-taking remark

Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda Sunday said if INLD leader Om Prakash Chautala had his way, the next government in the state could be operating from Delhi's Tihar Jail.

Taking a dig at Chautala's statement at a recent rally that he (Chautala) would take oath as the state chief minister in the jail, Hooda said that if his words came true, the next state government could function from the prison.

"If he (Chautala) takes oath inside Tihar Jail, the cabinet will also work from there. The Haryana government will also operate from there. If people have to meet him or get work done, they will have to commit some crime to get access to the jail," Hooda said at a rally in Faridabad.

Chautala, who is at present out on bail, was sentenced to 10-year imprisonment by a CBI court in Delhi in January 2013 after convicting him in a teachers' recruitment scam.

Chautala is barred under law from contesting any election but the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD), which he heads, has said that he would be the next chief minister if the INLD won in the next month's assembly elections in Haryana.

The polls for 90 assembly seats in Haryana are to be held Oct 15. The results will be known Oct 19.

At least 2,304 candidates have filed their nomination papers till Saturday, the last date for filing the nominations.