BJP Triumphs Again: Haryana's Preference For 'Double-Engine' Continues

The people of Haryana are very utilitarian when it comes to electing their government. Except for a period of two years, Haryana has had a government of the same party that was ruling at the Centre. Time and again, people have reposed their faith in this double-engine government configuration. It seems that this time the experts did not give due importance to this tendency and hence, their forecast of the BJP losing the elections was wide off the mark.

The anti-incumbency against the BJP was very visible but through certain deft moves, the party was able to overcome it and was able to consolidate its core voters. Some follies of the Congress also aided the BJP's efforts to secure a record third term in power in the state.

In hindsight, it seems that the BJP's move of changing the Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar just before the Lok Sabha elections has paid off. Some of the policies adopted by Khattar, especially the fair and transparent recruitment and transfer policy, has paid off for the party in these elections. However, despite having the image of a very honest person, Khattar did not rise in the popularity charts. He is basically an organisational man who was not comfortable with establishing a rapport with the public.

In Haryana, employment generation has always been an issue in Assembly elections. The BJP government did not fill all the vacant positions and this created a feeling of despondency among the youth; but the fear of return of nepotism and corruption was strong enough to keep the youth from moving away from the ruling party. The kharchi-parchi jibe of the BJP worked to its advantage by relaying the message that a change of government would bring back the discredited system.

The appointment of Nayab Singh Saini as Chief Minister also galvanised the backward caste to back the BJP in the Assembly elections. Saini is the first backward class leader of the BJP in Haryana to be appointed as Chief Minister. This has given a sense of recognition to the backward communities of the State.

The BJP's subtle campaign regarding the dominance of a particular community created a sense of unease and led to the consolidation of non-Jat communities around the party. In Haryana, caste has always played a very important role in political mobilisations. In the Lok Sabha elections, this division did not work; but in the Assembly elections, it is clear that fear of dominance of one caste in the Congress led to the consolidation of other castes around the BJP.

The BJP gave clear prominence to its traditional support base of upper caste and urban classes in the ticket distribution and it has paid off. While the Congress relied on the Jats, Chamars and the Muslims for these elections, the results show belie that this combination could not make a dent in the BJP support base.

The Congress's over reliance on Bhupinder Singh Hooda gave the signal that other leaders do not have a say in the running of affairs of the party and that this would also reflect in any government formed by the Congress. The running feud between Hooda and Selja Kumari sent the wrong message to the electorate that underprivileged communities would not have much say if Congress gets a majority. Selja's absence from the election campaign was a clear signal that everything was not hunky-dory within the Congress.

Bhupinder Singh Hooda's imprint was quite clear in the distribution of tickets as well. Most of the candidates were sponsored by Hooda and some of them would not have been given the ticket but for their loyalty to Hooda. Many of these candidates' performance as MLAs were not up to the mark and they could not duck the anti-incumbency against them. Whereas, the BJP has experimented with new candidates and succeeded in overcoming the anti-incumbency against sitting MLAs.  So, one could observe people turning against those MLAs who did not perform as per the expectations of the electorate irrespective of their party affiliations.

The campaign style of the BJP is remarkable when compared with the Congress. Most observers went wrong because the BJP mobilised its supporters very silently whereas the Congress campaign was highly visible. The Congress has to learn a trick or two from the BJP in leading their opponents on the path of over confidence. The Congress campaign tapered off in the last days believing that they had already won the elections.  Keeping Khattar off the campaign was a deliberate move by the BJP to keep anti-incumbency at bay.

Haryana people have once again opted for the 'Double-Engine' government keeping in view the interest of the state with the belief that it is best for them if there is no conflict with the centre than the interest of the people could be achieved without much hindrances.