As the BJP looks set for a historic third victory in Haryana, it will be the boost the party needs after overcoming the deficit in the Lok Sabha elections – and ahead of the upcoming Assembly elections.
While no government will be formed in Jammu and Kashmir, even there the BJP looks set to hold onto – if not expand – its strongholds.
In both Haryana and J&K, the party’s direct challenger was the Congress, while the BJP’s dominance means it maintains its edge in national politics – however the INDIA bloc’s post-Lok Sabha polls are exciting.
Faced with major unrest in Haryana, farmer and farmer anger over prolonged protests and dissatisfaction with the Agniveer scheme, the BJP has spread its bets in the state. When Prime Minister Narendra Modi went to mass rallies, though he addressed just four against 10 in 2019, there was equal emphasis on local leaders and consolidation of anti-Jat votes.
Congress’ extreme emphasis on the Jat vote seems to have galvanized some communities against the party. Even the Dalit vote, which the Congress was eyeing after its success in wooing them in the Lok Sabha elections, does not seem to have completely left the BJP.
The narrative of the campaign revolved around Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini, the BJP bankrolled that he had been in power for less than six months, and thus managed to escape 10 years of party rule. After dumping many senior leaders to get new faces, a strategy that seems to have clicked against the Congress’s decision to repeat all sitting MPs, the BJP stopped its narrative of what the Saini government had done in terms of jobs and the backward classes, by proposing. the annual income limit for the creamy layer of employment in the OBC category is from Rs 6 lakh to Rs 8 lakh.
Another highlight of the BJP’s campaign was the promise of “bina parchi, bina kharchi naukri”, the allegation that under the two-term Congress led by Bhupinder Singh Hooda, jobs would not be available without favors or bribes.
BJP leaders said the party’s core group is ensuring that the concerns of “almost all important leaders” are taken care of. “The demands and demands of many top leaders are welcome. The concerns of all those leaders who were unhappy which was considered the cause of the party’s poor performance in the Lok Sabha elections have been taken seriously,” said a party source.
The BJP was down to five of the 10 seats in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, and the results were followed by a spate of resignations and an outright rebellion by some leaders.
The BJP’s Haryana core delegation included Union minister Dharmendra Pradhan, who is in charge of the Haryana elections; Biplab Kumar Deb, co-chairman; Satish Poonia, BJP state in-charge; CM Sahni; former CM Manohar Lal Khattar; Haryana party chief Mohan Lal Badoli; and Haryana BJP ruling party Faninder Nath Mishra.
A party source said the party was supported by the senior leadership. “These leaders decided the candidates but the final call was taken by Union Home Minister Amit Shah and BJP president JP Nadda.”
A decisive victory for the BJP will also silence opponents who have been talking about a rift with the RSS hurting the party. In Haryana, the RSS is believed to have taken a backseat to the BJP’s hardline organization.
The BJP can expect the Haryana results to follow in neighboring Delhi, which is heading for elections within months. The team has not won the national capital for over 25 years.
A victory in Haryana will also give the BJP bargaining power in Maharashtra, where it is locked in a bitter seat race with allies, and in Jharkhand, where the party has already lost ground.
Besides, the BJP’s performance in Haryana and J&K is a practical test of Congress’ ambitions. Congress allies in Maharashtra and Jharkhand are now expected to negotiate a tough deal.