CHANDIGARH: Despite facing huge anti-incumbency, protests by farmers and wrestlers, and discontent over the Agniveer scheme, the BJP defied all exit poll projections to achieve the unprecedented feat of a third consecutive term in Haryana.
If political analysts are to be believed, the emphasis of the Congress on the Jat vote bank, which comprises almost 27 per cent of the state’s electorate, backfired. Leader of Opposition Bhupinder Singh Hooda pushed for the candidates of his choice but of the 28 sitting MLAs of the party whom he preferred, only 13 won.
Talking to The New Indian Express, Dr SS Chahar, former director of the Centre of Haryana Studies in Rohtak, says, "The micro management by the ruling BJP for each vote was up to the mark this time. Also, the RSS played a vital role as its volunteers met party workers and sorted out the differences. The migrant and floating vote went to the party. The saffron party focused their whole campaign on former CM Hooda and his son and the non-Jat vote bank consolidated in favour of the party as they targeted this vote bank, especially the SCs and OBCs, as the BJP government had announced many sops before the polls. Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini has also been accessible to the public."
"On the other hand, the infighting and factionalism in the Congress and the failure of the party's top leadership to curb it led to their downfall," he says.
The rivalry between Sirsa MP and SC face of the party Kumari Selja and former Chief Minister and Jat leader Bhupinder Singh Hooda seems to have played a key role in the party’s loss.
BJP leaders including Prime Minister Narendra Modi hit out at the infighting in the Congress, saying that senior SC leader Kumari Selja has been 'sidelined'. The prospect of Hooda again becoming CM may have alienated non-Jat voters.
Meanwhile, the BJP chose fresh faces to combat ten years of anti-incumbency and also focused on the OBC vote, which is around 38 per cent. Making Nayab Singh Saini, the state party chief, as Chief Minister in March this year replacing Manohar Lal Khattar who was CM for nine-and-a-half years did the trick for the saffron party.
The BJP started its campaign in the state much before the Congress in January, highlighting government schemes and emphasising Direct Benefit Transfers (DBT) besides rectifying issues in their Parivar Pehchan Patras. Also, a slew of welfare announcements were made before the poll code was enforced.
Apart from election rallies addressed by top party leaders like Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah, there was also an emphasis on local leaders. Party leaders at the rallies said the people of Haryana prefer to vote for the party which formed the government in the Centre.
On the other hand, the campaign of the Congress started much later and the party held fewer rallies. The party campaign was around farmers, wrestlers and the Agniveer scheme, which failed to consolidate into votes for the party.
The Muslim vote bank, however, remained firmly behind the Congress. Its Ferozepur Jhirka candidate Mamman Khan won while two other Muslim-dominated seats of Nuh and Punahana were also won by the party.
The Congress was expecting to win the SC vote after bagging five Lok Sabha seats from the state in the recent Parliamentary elections, but that was not the case. The saffron party was successful in targeting the Scheduled Caste vote bank and women's self-help groups in villages.
The BJP also benefited from its claim to have provided jobs without the need to pay bribes or get recommendations (Bina Parchi, Bina Kharchi Kaukri) unlike during the previous Congress government.
Another advantage the BJP seems to have got is the fragmented opposition as the Congress and AAP could not seal an alliance unlike in the Lok Sabha polls. Also, the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) entered into an alliance with the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), while the Jannayak Janta Party (JJP) allied with the Azad Samaj party. Though the performance of the INLD and JJP was dismal, the split in the anti-BJP vote contributed to the Congress’s defeat in several constituencies.