As parliamentary polls draw near, the ruling saffron BJP and the main opposition party Congress are leaving no stone unturned to mark third consecutive victory and regain the power following its exile of around a decade respectively. Working overnight and holding the meetings with cluster in-charges, coordinators, and constituency in-charges, the BJP stalwarts have claimed a huge victory in forthcoming polls and its presence at all election booths. Overwhelmed by the win in adjoining Rajasthan, the BJP is on toes working overnight to make voters aware of the development works carried out under central and state projects.
Similarly other political parties in Haryana have begun preparations for the upcoming elections in full swing. In a bid to win the polls, the BJP has conducted programs in every Lok Sabha constituency so far. The ruling BJP and the main opposition party Congress are going head to head for political dominance and power ahead of the polls and political experts are of the opinion that the two may emerge as main political rivals. Despite the continuous efforts, other political parties namely Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Jannayak Janta Party (JJP) and Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) claiming one-sided victory in upcoming polls or playing the role of kingmaker in the state, do not seem in a strong position as compared to the BJP and the Congress.
Notably, the BJP won 40 seats in Haryana Assembly poll held in 2019 as compared to 47 seats the party bagged in the Assembly poll held in 2014. Congress won 31 seats, while JJP got 10 seats. INLD, which had won 19 seats in 2014 polls, could get just one seat, while others managed to grab eight seats. The BJP and the Congress are pretty aware with previous results as the BJP somehow managed to form the government while the Congress stalwart Bhupender Singh Hooda used to claim that the party was inches away from forming the government. The Congress’ strategy to speed up its campaign and cover political ground in the upcoming polls will likely be a litmus test for the BJP.
However, the Congress has been on shaky ground in the state in the past. In wake of the strengthening position, the BJP stalwarts, even the national leaders of the party are repeatedly attacking Bhupinder Singh Hooda which clearly indicates new political speculations and developments that the battle on the cards might come down to the BJP and Congress in Haryana, leaving little room for other parties. Notably, Hooda has a prominent position in state politics.
As a part of the polls preparations,two factions of the Haryana Congress have launched yatras parallelly , exposing the widening rift within the party’s state unit in an election year. In a reaction to the prevailing feud in the party, Both factions claim to promote the message of Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra from Manipur to Maharashtra. Two days after state Congress unit led by Udai Bhan, a confidant and close one to former chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, launched the “Ghar Ghar Congress, Har Ghar Congress” yatra, while SRK faction led by Kumari Selja — an All India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary and known arch rival of Hooda — launched the Congress Sandesh Yatra.
The JJP, which is an ally in power and faced the fiasco in Rajasthan polls recently, is facing hurdles on several fronts simultaneously. However, party leader and Deputy CM Dushyant Chautala is claiming to contest all 90 assembly seats and 10 Lok Sabha seats. The JJP continues to face ongoing infighting in the party as several MLAs are believed to be upset with the party’s high command. As for the INLD, the party has been in political exile for almost two decades, but is leaving no stone unturned to regain political ground.
Unfortunately for the party, it might not be able to position itself as a heavy hitter. Similarly, AAP, which is on its toes to strengthen its position in Haryana, does not seem in a strong position as the party has suffered big blows in the last one month. Ashok Tanwar is the second big shot of the AAP in Haryana to quit the party after former minister and four-time MLA Nirmal Singh bid adieu to the party along with his daughter Chitra Sarwara last month. The father-daughter duo returned to the Congress in an election year. Lacking bigwigs in Haryana, it will be an uphill task for the AAP to win upcoming polls.