As Haryana goes to the polls today, the incumbent BJP, aiming for a third consecutive term, faces a formidable challenge from Congress, which is eager to reclaim power after a decade-long absence.
However, the dynamics in neighbouring Congress-ruled Himachal Pradesh could influence voter sentiments in Haryana, highlighting the interconnectedness of regional politics in this election cycle.
A pressing factor in the Haryana polling is the Congress's failed "guarantee model" in Himachal Pradesh, which the BJP has found to be a potent weapon to prove that the Congress guarantees rolled-out in Haryana, partially borrowed from Himachal Pradesh, will not work and are bound to collapse soon.
“The unfulfilled commitments have sparked widespread discontent in Himachal Pradesh—where the state is now struggling to pay salaries and pensions to the staff and retired employees. Most facilities available to the people have neither been withdrawn nor curtailed owing to the financial crisis” says Leader of Opposition Jairam Thakur, who is campaigning in Haryana in the areas next to the state’s borders.
This, he says, has cast doubts on the Congress' credibility and potential to influence voter sentiment in Haryana.
Thakur says the debt burden of Himachal Pradesh, currently at Rs 90,000 cr, will exceed Rs one lakh crore by the end of the year. The state has been pushed to bankruptcy. For the first time, government employees did not get their salaries in time and pensioners had to waiting for dues till September 10.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi while campaigning in Haryana, highlighted how the voters in the hill state, where the Congress had formed the government two years back, are suffering, and even regretting choosing the Congress believing in its poll guarantees.
“Himachal Pradesh, your neighbouring state, is not so far from Haryana. Go and ask to see the situation. Nobody is happy with the government. Congress fed lies to every section. None of the promises (poll guarantees) have been fulfilled. The employees are forced to go on strike for their salaries. The pensioners have threatened protests. The Chief Minister and ministers' salaries are deferred for two months,” he reminded.
BJP’s national president J P Nadda also told women voters that a promise to pay Rs 1,500 per month to all eligible women in Himachal Pradesh had not been fulfilled. In Haryana, the Congress says it will pay financial support of Rs 2,000 per month to women.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah, former Union Minister Anurag Thakur and state BJP president Rajeev Bindal during their recent rallies warned Haryana voters against trusting Congress, citing the struggles of Himachal Pradesh.
As the congress leadership in Haryana could not come out with a strong defence, the party launched Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu and couple of Congress MLAs to counter the BJP’s concerted drive on “failed guarantee model”.
Sukhu, who had been unwell for over a week, finally joined the Congress campaign at Panchukla a day before the campaign came to an end.
Earlier last month, Sukhu was slated to address election rallies in Jammu and Kathua areas but due to his sudden illness, he had to remove himself from the campaign.
“Moment the doctors declared him fit, the Chief Minister decided to join the party’s campaign in Haryana and counter the saffron party’s malicious propaganda and present misleading facts to the public there. The BJP has forgotten how it failed to topple duly elected congress government in Himachal Pradesh and also suffered defeat in the nine bypolls,” says Naresh Chauhan, the CM’s principal media advisor.
In his poll rally at Panchkula in favour of former Dy CM Chander Mohan, Sukhu launched a severe attack on the BJP leadership of the state for not providing correct facts to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Himachal Pradesh finances and fiscal prudence that he has undertaken.
“Unlike the BJP, the promises made by Congress will be fulfilled without fail. The congress has done it in Himachal Pradesh, will do the same in Haryana, a brother state” he said.
Sukhu said, “During elections in Haryana, Modi ji (Prime Minister) talked about Himachal, but I want to point out that the PM’s facts were not correct. The Congress government has met its main promise of the Old Pension Scheme (OPS) soon after coming to power. It has benefitted 1.36 lakh employees. Till now the government has fulfilled five out of 10 guarantees in just 20 months, despite a precarious financial position of the state for which the BJP is to blame.”
He said the state faced the worst disaster of the century but no help was received from the Centre. The state government settled 23,000 families without any central help,” he said and had announced a package of Rs 4500 cr for the affected families.
“We are on a fiscal correction path. The resource mobilisation is top most agenda. It’s in this regard, some of the subsidies of the taxpayers have been cut down and freebies stopped for affordable sections. We are working towards making Himachal Pradesh self -reliant state by” he said
Nevertheless, the unfulfilled poll guarantees have generated a new debate as to why didn't the congress release the burden these could impose on the exchequer or state's capacity to afford such luxury at the cost of basic development needs.
The analysts say “This increased scrutiny of the congress's guarantee model and their deliveries by the government, could also be a new test in the poll bound Haryana in keenly contested elections”
