In a dramatic political turn, Ashok Tanwar, ex-MP from Sirsa, returned to the Congress fold on the final day of campaigning on Thursday. Former Haryana Congress chief Tanwar, who had left the party five years ago and briefly aligned with several political parties including the BJP and AAP, made his return in the presence of Rahul Gandhi at a rally in Mahendragarh on Thursday.
His return is seen as a significant blow to the BJP, particularly as Tanwar had been their candidate in the Sirsa constituency during the recent Lok Sabha elections as the saffron party had ignored its sitting MP Sunita Duggal. Tanwar’s re-entry into the Congress, facilitated by his direct communication with Rahul Gandhi, came as a surprise even to the Haryana state unit of the party. Congress insiders revealed that Tanwar had been in touch with Gandhi for some time, and the decision to rejoin was finalised just a day before his public appearance at the rally.
“Today marks exactly five years since I left the Congress. Whatever happened in the past is history now,” Tanwar stated, adding that he will now be working towards making Haryana the number one state. Political observers term Tanwar’s return is seen as a major setback for the BJP, which had been counting on his influence in Dalit-majority areas. His defection came at a time when the BJP had been accusing Congress of being “anti-Dalit” following internal tensions between senior Congress leaders Bhupinder Singh Hooda and Kumari Selja, both from Haryana.
During a press conference Hooda said that he has himself welcomed Tanwar into the party.
Tanwar, once a rising star within the Congress and a close associate of Gandhi, had a turbulent political journey after quitting the party in 2019. He initially floated his own political outfit, joined the AAP in 2022, and even briefly aligned with the Trinamool Congress (TMC). In January this year, he joined the BJP and campaigned actively for the party’s candidates, particularly in reserved constituencies. His absence from the BJP’s campaign in the last few days had already raised speculation about his political future.
The political rivalry between Tanwar and Hooda, which had been one of the factors behind Tanwar’s departure from the Congress. The rivalry had once peaked when Hooda successfully lobbied to replace Tanwar with Selja as the Haryana Congress chief ahead of the 2019 Assembly polls, leading to Tanwar’s resignation from the party. But the differences now appeared to be set aside for now, as both leaders stood together on the same stage. Even Hooda welcomed him in the party fold with the party flag.
Tanwar emphasized unity and a fresh start, while also promising to strengthen the Congress’s presence in Haryana.