Haryana hat-trick: BJP beats the odds to script history

Looking set to return to power for a third consecutive term in Haryana, defying political pundits and exit polls, the BJP has rewritten history.

The apparent victory of the BJP becomes more impressive as it has actually improved its vote share, making this its best-ever performance in the state in an Assembly election that was supposed to lead to its doom.

As of 2 pm, the BJP is ahead in 50 seats in Haryana with around 39 per cent votes while the Congress is ahead in 35 seats with around 40 per cent votes in the state. A political party or combine needs 46 seats in the 90-member House to achieve a simple majority.

Thumbs up for Modi

The imminent victory in Haryana is a shot in the arm for Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who faced a disastrous parliamentary election in June this year, failing to lead the BJP to even the half-way mark in the 545-seat Lok Sabha.

Also read | Haryana results: ‘Jat vs non-Jat formula clicked for BJP’

In the national elections, the BJP won just five of the 10 Lok Sabha seats in Haryana.

“This is a historic performance for the BJP. There was a conspiracy by the Opposition to malign the image of the BJP and its leadership, but the people of Haryana have supported the BJP,” Harjit Singh Grewal, a senior BJP leader in Haryana, told The Federal.

“The people of Haryana have taught a lesson to the Congress for playing with the sentiments of people,” he added.

No impact of farm protest, Agnipath

The verdict in Haryana is a clear sign that the lingering farm protests did not have an impact on the BJP electorally. The protests by wrestlers from Haryana did not help the Congress either.

Most political experts had expected the two issues to sway the voter mood against the BJP.

Also read | Haryana CM Saini: BJP will form govt, Congress will blame EVMs

The last-minute announcement by the BJP that it will make changes in the Agnipath scheme — so that all the retired soldiers, or Agniveers, will be employed by paramilitary forces after their tenure ends — seems to have worked in its favour.

“I have headed the farmers’ organisation of the BJP for eight years and I can say confidently that the farmers of Haryana favoured the BJP and did not support the farm protests in the first place,” Grewal emphasised.

BJP’s gamble

The BJP’s move to change its chief minister in March this year has helped the party address the anti-incumbency factor.

Also read | Why a Haryana win could give BJP a solid edge against JMM in Jharkhand

Just before the Lok Sabha elections, the BJP leadership replaced Manohar Lal Khattar with Nayab Singh Saini as the Chief Minister, who led the party in the elections.

The BJP’s decision to focus on non-Jat votes and members of the Other Backward Classes (OBCs) has also worked in its favour.