BJP’s victory in urban body elections on the seventh sky, Congress’s big challenge
After forming a government for the third consecutive time in Haryana in October 2024, the Bharatiya Janata Party managed to form a ‘triple engine’ government with a victory in the recent local body elections on the basis of alleged ground game. The BJP won 5 out of a total of 10 Lok Sabha seats in the state in May 2024. She managed to form the government by winning 48 seats in 90 in the October 2024 assembly elections. Now by registering an unexpected victory in the local body elections in March 2025, the BJP is claiming the ‘triple engine’ government in the state. The BJP has already started preparing for the 2029 elections. In contrast, there are signs of the main opposition party Congress to become thin. The Congress, who was convinced about the victory in the assembly elections, was only 37 seats, but instead of taking lessons from the defeat, the party is still struggling with fraud, factional and organizational weakness, its witnesses are elections in local bodies.
However, in the assembly elections held five months ago, the difference between BJP and Congress was less than one percent, which seems to be transformed into a deep ditch in local civic elections. In the local body elections, 9 out of 10 mayor have gone to BJP’s account. The BJP won 10 municipal corporations of the state in Gurugram, Faridabad, Panipat, Ambala, Hisar, Yamunanagar, Karnal, Rohtak and Sonipat while the independent mayor in the Manesar Nigam is also a supporter. The BJP won most of the five city councils and 23 municipalities. This victory is indicated to the Congress for 2029 that the ‘triple engine’ is a tough challenge in Haryana without united.
Scattered Kunba: Udaybhan, Surjewala, (above right), Bhupendra Hooda and Kumari Selja
The victory in three consecutive elections in the last 10 months, BJP state president Mohan Lal Badoli, says, “In Haryana politics, the BJP has once again proved that all the opposition parties can be pushed to marginalize by collapsing the speculations of alleged anti-incumbency on the strength of organizational strength and strategic resolution.”
But Congress leader, former Chief Minister Bhupendra Singh Hooda told Outlook, “The cases of disturbances from EVMs in the assembly elections are well known. The BJP’s alleged triple engine, which has wired the democratic process on the basis of Sama, Daam, Dan, has derailed the economy and development of Haryana. The same is the identity of the BJP government.
The BJP has immersed the state into debt of more than five lakh crore rupees. In 1966, there was a total debt of Rs 70,000 crore during all governments from the formation of Haryana to 2014, it has increased by more than 735 percent to Rs 5.16 lakh crore in the last 10 years. ”
A major reason for the defeat of the Congress in the local body elections was that its top leadership did not land in the election campaign. Veteran leaders like Bhupendra Singh Hooda, Kumari Selja, Randeep Surjewala and state president Udaybhan kept distance from campaigning in local body elections. Then Hooda had said, “The defeat in the local body elections does not matter. The BJP was dominated by the municipal elections earlier. I do not go for campaigning during the panchayat or corporation elections.”
Haryana Chief Minister Saini
A senior Congress leader said on the condition of anonymity, “The Congress took the civic elections lightly. It was a big lapse. On the other hand, the BJP had put all the big leaders including Chief Minister Naib Singh Saini, Union Cabinet Minister Manohar Lal Khattar. The district president and the organization were entrusted with the responsibility. Chief Minister Saini and Union Minister Khattar had held more than 100 public meetings and street meetings. ”
Former Congress spokesperson Ran Singh Mann says, “Congress leaders have given up arms in front of BJP since the defeat in the assembly elections. No MLA has gone far away to campaign in the local body election. No moral responsibility for this defeat is not ready to take any moral responsibility. The party got a criminal defeat even in a Congress stronghold. Found, where they are home. The BJP candidate’s victory was heavy on the morale of Congress workers. ”
Since the formation of the BJP government in 2014 for the first time, the Congress has been a victim of internal factionalism in the state. Bhupendra Singh Hooda vs Kumari Selja factionalism has been going on for years. Leaders like Randeep Surjewala and Ashok Tanwar were also divided into different factions. The Congress could not create a district level organizational structure in the state for the past decade. In contrast, the BJP left no stone unturned in its organizational expansion. Even after the victory in the Lok Sabha, Assembly and local body elections, the BJP has appointed 28 district presidents in Haryana with 22 districts in the recent change in the organization. Different urban and rural presidents have been formed in big districts like Hisar, Gurugram, Faridabad so that every block in every ward of cities to every block in rural areas.
Regarding the situation of the Congress and the consistent victory of the BJP, Dr. Neeraj Sharma, head of the Department of Political Science of Guru Jambheshwar University and senior political analyst, says, “BJP has set up triple engine models through Modi brand, power in Haryana, power in the center-state and strong organization. For the local body elections, there is not only a municipal post to maintain power, but the BJP’s challenge is never a matter of maintaining power in the state. The real contest has been from the Congress, but the Congressless Congress looks directionless without the organization and internal discord. ”
Despite six months of the assembly elections, the Congress high command could not decide the opposition. Regarding the confusion about the Leader of Opposition, Congress state in -charge BK Hariprasad said, “It is currently the priority of the party to strengthen the organization. More than the selection of the Leader of the Opposition, more party organization is to be strengthened at the ground level.”
On the other hand, after the ten-year rule, the BJP made OBC face Naib Singh Saini the Chief Minister on 12 March 2024, just before the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, for fear of anti-incumbency, and filled the entire cabinet with new faces. It adopted a strategy of Jat and non-Jat equation. Even though more than 50 competitive examinations were leaked, but in government jobs “bin slip bin speech”, my family my identity, schemes like Chief Minister Antyodaya Parivar upliftment were linked to the party with large -scale publicity in rural and urban areas.
In order to bring half the population of the state, women in the assembly election manifesto, in the Lado Laxmi Bahna Scheme on the lines of Madhya Pradesh, a provision of Rs 5,000 crore was made in the budget of FY 2025-26 for allowances for women every month. When the allowance will be received and which women will get it, it is still not clear, but in the budget session of the assembly, the Saini government has tried to help women and opposition.
For the third consecutive time on power, the BJP is in a decisive position, the Congress is struggling with internal politics and organizational weaknesses. If the Congress fails to erect the organization afresh, then its land in the state can move. Because the increased BJP clan at the grassroots level due to victory in Lok Sabha, Assembly and local bodies is now active for panchayat elections.
The challenge in front of the Congress is whether it is able to get herself a new life in the organization as a strong opposition in front of the BJP’s “Triple Engine Model”? It has to be seen whether the high command and the new state in -charge BK Hariprasad will be able to find a formula to revive the Congress in Haryana?
