NEW DELHI: Political tensions are rising in Haryana state as state assembly elections approach, with a series of protests by farmers and women wrestlers and anger over the controversial Agnipat recruitment scheme leaving the BJP and Indian National Congress trying to address social divisions.
In the Lok Sabha elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Indian National Congress shared the seats 50-50. The Indian National Congress managed to snatch five Lok Sabha seats from the Indian National Congress, which managed to avoid a major electoral defeat amid growing anger among Jats and farmers in the state.
For the Indian National Congress, the June 4 result marked a comeback after a series of electoral defeats since 2014. It also came as a major relief to the Bharatiya Janata Party, which avoided the major defeat some had predicted.
According to the Lok Sabha data, the two parties are set to have a tough fight in the state elections. The Indian National Congress is leading in 46 seats and the BJP in 44, but the INLD and JJP are far behind the major parties. Currently, the Indian National Congress has 29 seats and the BJP has 41. Three independents and the JJP (10) have withdrawn their support to the BJP.
With the results of the Lok Sabha elections sending an encouraging message to both sides, the factional BJP will likely highlight unemployment, Agniveru and farmers’ issues, while the Bharatiya Janata Party will appeal to voters on its record of maintaining law and order and fighting corruption, and target the previous Congress government.
After 10 years of uninterrupted rule, the BJP replaced Chief Minister ML Khattar, a Brahmin, with Nayab Singh Saini, from the OBC community, just before the Lok Sabha elections, and is hoping to retain power in the state by winning the support of voters from backward communities.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah, the BJP’s chief election strategist, has visited the state twice in the past few weeks, the last of which was at an “OBC rally” on Tuesday where he announced the decision to raise the creamery limit in the state, positioning the Indian National Congress as an “anti-OBC” party and setting the tone for the party’s election campaign.
Meanwhile, the Indian National Congress is pinning its hopes on the leadership of former Chief Minister Bhupinder Hooda, who has managed to maintain a firm grip on the party organisation in the state, much to the disappointment of critics such as Randeep Surjewala and Kumari Selja.
Earlier this week, Hooda launched “Haryana Mange Hisab” with his son, Deepender Hooda, a Congress leader, and began a “padayatra” – a veiled echo of Rahul Gandhi’s “Pure India March” – to boost campaign points in the run-up to the elections.
However, anti-Hooda leaders are not taking part in the “Haryana Mange Hisaab” campaign, which they claim is aimed at giving the younger Hooda an edge in state politics, with the elder Hooda saying this will be his last election.
The central leadership has given Hooda free rein in Haryana as he is said to be the only leader with the means and methods to lead the election campaign.Hooda’s camp has been strengthened with the defection of Kiran Choudhury, who was part of the faction that also included Surjewala and Selja.
The biggest challenge facing the BJP central leadership is to bring all the warring factions onto a single platform, as it did ahead of state elections in Karnataka, Telangana and Himachal Pradesh. Selecting a candidate will be a major headache, and Hooda has already made it clear to the leadership that they cannot field just anyone.
Published July 17, 2024 10:19 IST
