The Congress party’s Central Election Committee (CEC) is set for a high-stakes meeting on September 2-3 to finalise candidates for the crucial Haryana and Jammu & Kashmir assembly elections.
With the Screening Committee of Haryana, led by senior leader Ajay Maken, concluding its five-day marathon deliberations, the stage is now set for intense negotiations as the party brass works to balance competing factions within Haryana’s Congress unit.
After five days of discussions, the Screening Committee has prepared a list of proposed candidates for all 90 assembly seats in Haryana. These names will now be submitted to the CEC, chaired by Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, who will have the final say. The first list of candidates is expected to be released on Tuesday, September 3. “The fifth-day meeting of the Screening Committee concluded today. Tomorrow, the Congress Election Committee will meet. The day after tomorrow, Congress will release its first list of candidates”, said Haryana Congress In-charge Deepak Babaria. “Panels for all constituencies have been finalized, as single names have been suggested for many panels, while several others have two names”, he added.
Party insiders revealed that the Screening Committee has opted to re-field most sitting MLAs while also suggesting two names for several constituencies, leaving the final decision to the CEC. While the selection of candidates for Jammu & Kashmir is unlikely to cause much friction, Haryana presents a different story. The CEC will have to navigate the demands of senior leaders who are fiercely protective of their factions.
The internal dynamics are tense, with the Bhupinder Hooda-led faction and the Kumari Selja-led group both vying for dominance. Despite the central leadership’s hopes that the factions will unite for the greater good, the rivalry persists. The stakes are high, as Congress eyes a potential comeback after a decade out of power in Haryana, bolstered by its performance in five out of ten Lok Sabha seats in the state.
Reports suggest that Congress may retain over 20 sitting MLAs while introducing fresh faces in other constituencies. However, those who have consistently lost elections could see their tickets denied. The question remains whether the central leadership will permit sitting MPs like Kumari Selja and Randeep Surjewala to contest the Assembly elections. Though Haryana Congress in-charge Deepak Babaria initially ruled out MPs running for Assembly seats, he later hinted that MPs could be contenders for the Chief Ministerial position if they secure majority MLA support.
It is learnt that to counter BJP’s non-Jat card, Congress may also revise its strategy, potentially reducing the number of Jat candidates compared to previous elections. Meanwhile, the political gears are in motion. Former BJP MP from Hisar, Brijender Singh, who recently joined Congress, inaugurated his campaign office in Uchana Kalan signaling his likely candidacy from the seat held by his mother, Premlata Singh.
