AAP which was keen to test Punjab waters alone in 2024 LS polls, has finally announced to contest the forthcoming polls alone giving an indication about the political scenario in Haryana as well pertaining to the possibility of alliance between the AAP and the Congress, the main opposition party in the state. Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann’s decision that” party will go solo in parliamentary polls” has brought the possibility and talks regarding the alliance between both parties to an end. Similarly, with the hope of come back, Haryana Congress is also Keen to cash in its strengthened position and growing anti-incumbency against the saffron BJP in the state before upcoming polls.
On the lines of Punjab and Delhi, AAP that stormed to power in Punjab with a landslide victory in the state polls held in 2022, securing 92 seats in the 117-member Assembly and trouncing the Congress that could just win 18 seats., failed to prove its mettle in Haryana. Earlier, both parties were tight lipped on seat sharing, with their leaders stating any discussion on it is yet to take place as the party high command is supreme authority to take final call pertaining to the same. Keeping in view the fresh political development surfaced in the adjoining Punjab, Congress and AAP are all set to contest the Lok Sabha polls solo.
It is a noticeable fact that the Congress Bigwigs Bhupender Singh Hooda had insisted several times on going solo in the State stating that the party is capable of contesting polls and returning to power alone requiring no political crutch of any other party and in reaction to the reaction Hooda and other party leaders’ statement, AAP leaders in Haryana were reported stating that when the Congress could stake claim to parliamentary seats in AAP-led States of Delhi and Punjab, it must concede seats to us in Haryana too where it is in the Opposition. Thus, Bhagwant Mann’s statement ruled out any possibility of alliance between the two parties in the state. Notably, the Congress and AAP are allies in the Opposition INDIA bloc. In continuation to aforesaid, a Congress stalwart on the condition of anonymity said their party was not be very keen on offering seats to AAP going by its poor performance in the last Lok Sabha poll while the Congress is is pretty strong position having widespread acceptability across the state.
Following the resignation of bigwigs namely Nirmal Singh, his daughter Chitra Sarwar and now Ashok Tanwar in this series, the AAP in Haryana is lacking bigwigs ahead of polls who can galvanize the voters from all sections of the society. The AAP is on toes representing itself as an alternative of the Congress in Haryana for a long time has clearly parted its way. However, it is going to an uphill task for Haryana AAP to survive in the state politics solely with the out the non-electoral existence while contrary to this, the Congress seems in a pretty strong position. Unlike neighboring, Delhi and Punjab, AAP in Haryana could not fulfill the expectations of the party high command as the AAP is just an entrant in Haryana struggling to strengthen itself after it marked entry in the state.
AAP’s weaken position in Haryana can be gauged from the fact that the fixed deposits of most of the party’s candidates were confiscated and many of the candidates polled fewer votes in last polls. Apart from this, Adampur bypolls held on November 3, 2023 the party candidate managed to get around four thousand votes which resulted in his fiasco. After forming the government in Delhi and Punjab, the party was hopeful that the party would get significant success in Haryana but the efforts of the party leaders went in vein as failed to rise to occasion.