The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is facing a rebellion in Haryana, while the Congress may be witnessing hiccups in seat-sharing talks with the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) ahead of the state assembly elections this year. Here’s a look at the hurdles the BJP and the Congress are experiencing in the run-up to the Haryana Assembly polls.
Congress
Amid seat-sharing talks with its INDIA bloc partner AAP, NDTV sources said Congress leaders in Haryana are unwilling to concede too many of Haryana’s 90 assembly seats.
Sources also hinted at differences over which seats the AAP can contest on. According to the report, some of the seats identified by the AAP are those to which Congress leader Bhupinder Hooda expects to nominate his loyalists.
Earlier this week, sources told news agency ANI that Congress leader Rahul Gandhi discussed about the possibilities of contesting elections as INDIA bloc. He reportedly said that the party should make efforts to ensure that the votes of the alliance are undivided.
Responding to Rahul Gandhi’s statement, former Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda said that they can only give 3-4 seats to AAP; however, they are demanding more than that, so it is difficult to form an alliance, said sources.
Moreover, Bhupinder Hooda’s faction reportedly believes that Congress can win by contesting the state elections alone, and that allying with the AAP may send a message that Congress considers itself weak, Hindustan reported.
Hooda’s faction also questioned how an alliance with AAP will benefit the Congress when the chances of Congress are very strong. Congress leaders also highlighted that the AAP had received 0.36 per cent votes in Haryana in the 2019 general elections.
BJP
The BJP faced rebellion with minister Ranjit Singh Chautala and MLA Lakshman Dass Napa, who were denied ticket, quitting the party. The development came a day after the ruling BJP announced its first list of 67 candidates for the October 5 Haryana assembly polls.
Energy and Jails Minister Ranjit Chautala (79), the son of former deputy prime minister Devi Lal, said that he took a decision after a meeting with his supporters and will now enter the fray as an Independent.
Meanwhile, Napa met former chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda at his residence in Delhi and joined the Congress along with his supporters.
Former minister Karan Dev Kamboj also stepped down as state BJP’s OBC Morcha chief after the party ignored his candidature.
Meanwhile, Minister of State for Social Justice, Empowerment, SCs and BCs Bishamber Singh, the MLA from Bawani Khera reserve seat, was seen in tears after the party gave ticket to Kapur Valmiki from the seat, news agency PTI reported. Bishamber reportedly said the anger among his supporters was natural but added he will remain in the party.
While there were some prominent faces who quit the party, there were also a few leaders in some districts who were also aspirants and quit after not being considered for the ticket.
Haryana Assembly Election dates
The Haryana Assembly Election will be held in a single phase on October 5, and the counting of votes will happen on October 8. The Election Commission of India (ECI) had revised the polling day for the Haryana Assembly polls from October 1 to October 5, this year, as well as moved the counting of votes for both Jammu and Kashmir and Haryana assemblies from October 4 to October 8.
