BJP DECIDES TO CONTEST CIVIC POLLS SOLO TO AVOID 2020 REPEAT, PUTS ALLY JJP ON BACK FOOT

Ahead of the municipal elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has decided to contest alone instead of an alliance which is being considered a major setback for its ally Jannayak Janta Party (JJP).

Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal with Deputy Chief Minister Dushyant Chautala

The decision, announced after a two-day meeting of the BJP state executive held in Hisar, comes a day after a Delhi court awarded a four-year jail term to former Haryana Chief Minister Om Prakash Chautala in a disproportionate assets (DA) case.

Following the court order, the JJP cancelled all party programmes till further notice. Political experts are of the opinion that the BJP’s decision has put the JJP on backfoot. They even think that the BJP may come up with a decision to rule the state without the support of its alliance partner as six Independent MLAs and Gopal Kanda, who was elected an MLA on the ticket from the Lok Janshakti Party, had extended their support to the government after the BJP-JJP government came into force.

The JJP is not in a position to put pressure on the BJP. Deputy Chief Minister and JJP leader Dushyant Chautala had lost the local polls in his home turf Hisar’s Uklana and Rewari’s Dharuhera in 2020 which made the JJP and BJP face the debacle in mayoral elections. To some extent, it also forced the BJP to contest the elections alone instead of going with alliance partner JJP. The BJP has failed to gain full majority in the state in Assembly elections held in 2019 which forced it to form an alliance with JJP, an entrant then in the political sphere of the state, in a bid to set up government. After the BJP succeeded in forming the government, several Independent legislators pledged their support to the party which strengthened the BJP as it decreased the party’s dependency on ally JJP.

Political experts are of the opinion that continuous support of the Independent legislators continues to give boost to the BJP in the state as it would decrease the pressure of JJP. Out of seven independent legislators, six – Sombir Sangwan, Nayan Pal Rawat, Randhir Singh Golen, Dharam Pal Gonder, Rakesh Daultabad and Ranjeet Singh Chautala – elected from Charkhi Dadri, Prithla, Pundri, Nilokheri, Daultabad and Rania, respectively, had extended their support to the BJP.

Ranjit Singh Chautala was given a berth in the state government while the remaining five were appointed as chairman in different corporations and boards. Another independent elected from Maham, Balraj Singh Kundu, had also extended support to the BJP and withdrew it after the ruling faction introduced the three contentious farm laws. Another MLA from Haryana Lokhit Party (HLP) also extended his support the ruling BJP.