Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Minister and BJP National President JP Nadda greet the gathering at the party headquarters after the declaration of results for the Haryana and Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections, in New Delhi, Tuesday, Oct. 8, 2024.
Credit: PTI Photo
New Delhi: The BJP won a third straight term in Haryana when many expected it to lose in the face of growing anti-incumbency, anger among the farmers, and over the Agniveer scheme. But, how did it manage to defy the exit poll predictions?
A consolidation of the non-Jat votes, BJP’s micromanagement and its campaign around its development work are some of the factors that the saffron party’s leaders have attributed as the reasons behind it coming to power for a record third consecutive term in Haryana, while also managing to be the first party to do so in the state’s history.
The deluge of independents across the 90 seats, the Congress and AAP fighting separately, and the infighting within the Congress are also some of the reasons that party leaders said led to its unexpected turnaround despite pollsters pointing at a Congress sweep.
The RSS campaigning for the BJP after its indifference during the Lok Sabha elections, too, helped the party.
While several BJP leaders attributed the win to the “double engine sarkar” and Modi’s aggressive campaigns in the run up to the elections, a key factor that emerged is the consolidation of non-Jat votes.
“When the Congress decided to give the reins to the Hoodas, the non-Jat voters decided to consolidate behind the BJP. Nayab Singh Saini is a spotless face among the OBC community, and the community supported us,” said a senior party leader overseeing the poll preparations in the state.
Saini is from the OBC community, who represents over 40 per cent of the state’s population, and he replaced Manohar Lal Khattar as the chief minister in March this year.
“Saini’s elevation also breaks through the state’s dynastic politics; people are fed up with the Hoodas, Chautalas and Bishnois,” the leader added.
A senior party leader said that contrary to the idea that there was anti-incumbency, the BJP’s developmental works bore fruit among the labhartis.
“At the last count, the government was spending close to Rs 5 crore in each village on developmental and welfare measures. In the Nal se Jal scheme, Haryana is one of the top states, and each village is connected by pucca roads,” the leader said.
In addition to that, the leader added, 24 crops were given MSPs, and farmers could access benefits via an app.
“We had this slogan in the state called, apna fasal, apna app (your crop, your app). In our tenure, we also gave jobs to 1,50,000 without corruption up from the 83,000 jobs the Congress had provided,” the leader said, adding that to drive the point home, the party had sent out scores of vans across the state highlighting these schemes and helping those with errors in their applications.
The BJP also campaigned more aggressively in the state – in all, the party’s leaders held 150 rallies across the state, significantly higher than the 75-odd rallies that Congress leaders held. Among the 150, 4-5 rallies were by PM Modi.
In addition to this and the infighting within the Congress, the high number of independents and the absence of an alliance with the Aam Aadmi Party has cost the Congress dearly.
The AAP, which did not win any seats in Haryana, had scored either more than 20,000 votes or slighter lesser than that in atleast four seats – Rewari, Jagadhri, Bhiwani, and Badshahpur.
Sources in the AAP said that the party had demanded only 4 seats in Haryana, without any pre-condition on what those seats should be.
The RSS, too, has been an important factor for the BJP. After a lull where they did not aggressively woo voters in support of the BJP, this time, after a key meeting of the Sangh and the BJP in September, the RSS sent out 150 of its hardened swayamsevaks to win the votes for BJP.
Haryana Assembly poll 2024 results| Check constituency results here
J&K Assembly poll 2024 results| Check constituency results here
Assembly Elections 2024 | In the first assembly polls since the Lok Sabha elections, Narendra Modi and the BJP face a rejuvenated and vindicated Opposition in the Haryana assembly polls. Meanwhile, Jammu and Kashmir is voting after almost a decade and it remains to be seen how the abrogation of Article 370 has impacted the political landscape of the Valley. Check live updates and track the latest coverage, live news, in-depth opinions, and analyses only on Deccan Herald.
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