Both the Congress and the BJP have finalised on candidates for a good number of seats, they are yet to officially release the list. This delay has fuelled speculation that both the BJP and Congress are strategically holding back, waiting for the other to reveal their candidates first, potentially to counter defections and fine-tune their own electoral strategies.
Despite multiple meetings by the BJP’s top brass in Haryana, there remains uncertainty surrounding the candidate list. Haryana BJP in-charge Mohan Lal Badoli had earlier assured that the party’s first list would be out soon, but the ongoing deliberations suggest otherwise.
According to senior party sources, the CEC meeting held on August 29 discussed 55 potential candidates, but it appears some names may be reconsidered.
Moreover, the recent development of talk of alliance between Congress and AAP may have also led to the delay.
The party’s leadership, including President J P Nadda, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, and in-charge Dharmendra Pradhan, held an extended meeting on Monday to address these concerns following the launch of the membership campaign. Internal reports suggest that the BJP is facing significant challenges in finalizing candidates for the Ahirwal and GT Road belt, traditionally seen as BJP strongholds. Senior party leader Rao Inderjit Singh has been pushing for a substantial share of tickets from Ahirwal, while the party also grapples with decisions on key seats such as Karnal, Panipat, Panchkula, Ambala City, Radaur, and Sonepat.
Discontent among some leaders, coupled with anti-incumbency sentiments after a decade-long rule, has further complicated the candidate selection process. One of the most closely watched decisions is whether Congress will field Olympian Vinesh Phogat. If they do, BJP plans to counter by fielding her cousin, Babita Phogat, against her.
BJP state president Mohan Lal Badoli confirmed that the party is actively gathering feedback from grassroots workers before finalizing candidates. “There was a long list of candidates, so we decided to survey everyone. Feedback from the booth level is being collected. After that, the central leadership will take a decision,” Badoli told media persons.
The BJP, which has held power in Haryana for two consecutive terms, is leaving no stone unturned to win the third consecutive term as the party has taken a note from the defeat of 5 lok sabha seats in the state in Lok Sabha elections. Meanwhile, news agencies have reported that the BJP is expected to release the first list of candidates for at least 50 seats on Wednesday.