Congress stalwart Bhupender Singh Hooda’s recent statement that after the party comes to power, will appoint four Deputy Chief Ministers from Brahmin, Dalit, OBC, and general category which resulted in political ruckus. It also led to political uproar in the state politics and over the issue, the ruling BJP and its ally JJP accused him of carrying forward caste-based politics. The matter increased to that extent, later he said that there is already a proposal in Congress to make four Deputy CMs as the same was announced ahead of elections held in 2019 and this formula is approved by the party. However, Hooda’s statement was also rejected by the party’s state president Uday Bhan and he said that all this would be decided only by the party’s high command. Because Congress is a party of 36 communities and here people of all communities are given equal importance.
Whereas Chief Minister Manohar Lal termed Hooda’s statement as a dismemberment of democracy. At the same time, Congress leader Kumari Selja from the opposite faction in the party camp against Hooda also does not agree with Hooda’s statement of making four Deputy Chief Ministers. Regarding Bhupendra Hooda’s statement about appointing 4 Deputy CMs in Congress in Haryana, JJP General Secretary Digvijay Singh Chautala said that when Dushyant Chautala became the Deputy Chief Minister, then Hooda had said that it was shocking that Dushyant has become the Deputy Chief Minister. and constitutionally, the Deputy Chief Minister has no power.
Pertaining to the issue, Hemant Kumar, an expert and lawyer in Haryana and Punjab and Haryana High Court said that there is no mention of the post of Deputy Chief Minister in the State/Territory and Deputy Prime Minister anywhere constitutionally in the relevant articles of the Constitution of India, yet from time to time, as a result of political compulsions and the need of coalition governments, the ruling parties Or Deputy Prime Ministers/Deputy Chief Ministers have been made by alliances
Notably, after the state came into existence in 1966, as many as 6 Deputy Chief Ministers including present one Dushyant Chautala, have been appointed in Haryana so far.
Chand Ram was the first Deputy Chief Minister of Haryana followed by Mangal Sen and Banarasi Das Gupta. Just five months after Haryana came into existence, the state had to face political turmoil which necessitated the appointment of Chand Ram as the Deputy Chief Minister. Later, Hukum Singh and Chandra Mohan Bishnoi held the portfolio of the Deputy Chief Minister Among all the six Deputy CMs, current Deputy CM Dushyant Chautala has had the longest tenure. After him, the second longest-serving Deputy CM is Chandan Mohan Bishnoi, who held the portfolio of Deputy CM for around 39 months in the Hooda government.
He was upset with the government being run under the leadership of Bhagwat Dyan Sharma, then Chief Minister, for not getting him a berth in the cabinet.
