Haryana civic polls: Congress put up a half-hearted fight, BJP went all out

Newly elected Rohtak Mayor Ram Avtar Valmiki of the BJP.
| Photo Credit: ANI

Less than six months after the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Haryana took the faction-ridden Congress by surprise, registering a record third win in a row in the October 2024 Assembly election, the ruling party dealt another blow to the grand old party in the State municipal polls.

In the results declared on Wednesday, the BJP came out on top, winning mayoral elections in nine out of 10 municipal corporations. The Congress drew a blank while an Independent candidate secured the Mayor’s post in the newly created Manesar municipal corporation.

Senior Congress leader and former Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda.
| Photo Credit:
file photo

However, the number of losses alone doesn’t tell the entire story of the Congress’s defeat. For that, one would have to look at the margins by which its candidates lost, ranging from 20,000 to over three lakh votes.

This is the same party that gave tough fights to the BJP in the 2024 Lok Sabha poll (in which both won five seats each, with the BJP registering 46.11% vote share and the Congress 43.67%) and the subsequent Assembly election (where the BJP won 48 seats with 39.9% votes and the Congress got 37 seats, lagging by just 0.81% votes). It suggests that the grand old party had little desire to win the civic polls and approached them half-heartedly.

Riding high

There is no doubt that the BJP, powered by a strong organisation and riding high on its Assembly poll victory, had an edge in the run-up to the municipal elections. However, it is also clear that the party did not take its victory for granted.

Its State-level leaders hit the ground running following the poll notification. While Chief Minister Nayab Saini held several roadshows, including one in Gurugram, his predecessor, Union Minister Manohar Lal, and serving Haryana Ministers held a series of rallies and public meetings across the State.

For some time, it appeared that the Congress, which has been battling internal strife and lack of organisational set-up at district and block levels for over a decade now, was trying to catch up to the BJP point-for-point.

It announced district in-charges for the civic polls, launched a manifesto and released a list of “star campaigners”. However, the Congress lacked its rival’s zeal, earnestness, and focus.

‘Factionalism exists’

The party’s Gurugram election in-charge, Karan Dalal, a former MLA, said that none of the star campaigners turned up to canvas in the Millenium City, except the State party chief Udai Bhan and Rohtak MP Deepender Hooda.

“Unfortunately, factionalism was there as before. Our MLA candidates did not campaign much, and the others chose to stay away,” said Mr. Dalal, not mincing words.

While the Congress accused the BJP of misusing government machinery and criticised the use of EVMs, instead of paper ballots, for the municipal elections, the grand old party’s rank and file, which is yet to recover from the Assembly poll loss, took the cue from their senior leaders and chose to mostly remain indoors.

The suspense over the name of the Leader of the Opposition and the possibility of drastic changes in the State leadership also discouraged the workers from hitting the ground.

Managing rivals

In contrast to the BJP, which managed internal dissent well (such as by preventing Transport Minister Anil Vij’s resentment from impacting the polls) and took stern action against its rebels, the Congress made no discernible efforts to placate many of its sulking leaders, including Hisar Assembly seat candidate Ram Niwas Rara, who quit the party during the municipal polls and joined the BJP, highlighting its indifference towards the elections.

The Congress in Haryana remains a power to reckon with. But the grand old party needs to set its house in order before it’s too late.