New Delhi: The Congress on Wednesday announced that its national spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala will be contesting the by-election to Haryana’s Jind Assembly constituency. Party President Rahul Gandhi took the final call on the candidate after a round of meetings chaired by party's senior leader K C Venugopal. The meeting was attended by top Haryana leaders of the party.

“The Congress President Rahul Gandhi has approved the candidature of Randeep Singh Surjewala as Congress candidate for ensuing by-election to the Legislative Assembly of Haryana from 36- Jind constituency” a press release by the party read.

An interesting fact is that Surjewala is already the member of Haryana Assembly from Kaithal assembly seat. Initially, he had refused to contests from Jind but was asked by Gandhi to fight the by-poll.

As per the sources the party high command believes that Surjewala is the party’s strongest candidate in the region.

By-poll to the Jind assembly seat is scheduled on January 28.  The tenure of the 90-member Haryana Assembly ends on November 2, 2019.

Congress leaders decided to field a strong candidate as they did not want to lose an election ahead of the state assembly polls.

Surjewala will engage in  a fight with BJP's nominee Krishan Middha, who is the son of late Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) MLA Hari Chand Middha.

Randeep Singh Surjewala is a sitting MLA in the Haryana state legislature and a former minister. He held water supply and sanitation, parliamentary affairs, electronics and information technology, science and technology and public works as a minister in Haryana cabinet