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Day after first list of candidates, Haryana BJP faces rebellion
State power minister Ranjit Chautala, Ratia MLA Laxman Dass Napa, OBC Morcha chief Kamboj among dozen leaders quit party, to contest October 5 assembly elections as Independent candidates.
A day after the BJP released its first list of 67 candidates for the Haryana assembly elections, the party faced rebellion from at least 12 leaders, including state minister Ranjit Singh Chautala, OBC Morcha chief Karam Dev Kamboj, Ratia MLA Laxman Dass Napa, Kisan Morcha state chief Sukhvinder Sheoran, who quit the primary membership of the party.
The leaders sent their resignations to state party chief Mohan Lal Badoli and announced their decision to contest independently.
Haryana power minister Ranjit Chautala convened a meeting of his supporters at Rania before announcing his decision to resign as minister as well as from the primary membership of the BJP.
Addressing supporters, Chautala said that he is son of former deputy prime minister Devi Lal and cannot compromise in any situation. “I will contest as an independent from Rania. The BJP offered me a ticket from Dabwali but I turned down the proposal. I am resigning from the cabinet and the primary membership of the party,” he said.
In the 2019 assembly elections, Ranjit Chautala had contested as an Independent candidate after the Congress denied him the ticket. He defeated Haryana Lokhit Party candidate Gobind Kanda. Later, he became a cabinet minister in the BJP government. Ahead of Lok Sabha elections, he joined the BJP by resigning as an MLA. He contested the Lok Sabha elections from Hisar but lost to Congress’s Jai Parkash. Despite not being part of the Haryana assembly since the Lok Sabha elections, Ranjit Chautala remained a minister in the Nayab Singh Saini-led BJP government.
To stay or not to stay
The BJP replaced Laxman Dass Napa with former Sirsa MP Sunita Duggal and the party pitched social activist Umed Pathuwas in place of Sukhvinder Sheoran. Napa is set to join the Congress and former Badhra MLA Sheoran has called a meeting of his workers to decide on the future course of action.
Senior BJP leader Shamsher Singh Kharkhara, who had contested the 2019 assembly polls on the BJP symbol from Meham, also quit the party after he was denied the ticket. The BJP has pitched former Indian kabaddi team captain Deepak Hooda from Meham and Kharkara is likely to join the Jannayak Janata Party (JJP).
Former Haryana minister Krishan Murti Hooda has also called a meeting of his workers after the BJP pitched Zila Parishad chairman Manju Hooda, wife of zila parishad chairman Rajesh Sarkari from Garhi-Sampla-Kiloi against former Haryana CM Bhupinder Singh Hooda. Krishan Murti will also take a call on whether to stay or leave the party.
In Jind’s Safidon, former MLA Bachan Singh Arya also resigned from the BJP after JJP rebel Ram Kumar Gautam was fielded. Arya will contest as an Independent. JJP rebel Gautam had joined the BJP at a rally in Jind last Sunday.
Karam Dev Kamboj quit the BJP as he was denied the party ticket from Radaur in Yamunanagar.
Ultimatum in Sonepat
Former Haryana minister Kavita Jain burst into tears on Thursday and she gave the party high command an ultimatum to change party candidate Nikhil Madan from Sonepat within three days. Nikhil, was earlier an associate of Rohtak MP Deepender Singh Hooda and he shifted to the BJP from the Congress a few months ago. He is the Sonepat mayor at present. Kavita Jain had won the 2014 assembly elections from Sonepat and lost the 2019 election from Congress’s Surender Panwar. This time, the BJP dropped her.
Addressing her workers, she said that if the BJP doesn’t change its Sonepat candidate by September 8 then she will decide her next course of action.
Savitri to contest as Independent
Disappointed, supporters of former minister Savitri Jindal, who is the mother of Kurukshetra BJP MP Naveen Jindal, met her at her house in Hisar and urged her to contest as an Independent after the BJP retained health minister Kamal Gupta as its candidate. Savitri and her son Naveen had joined the BJP in the run-up to the Lok Sabha elections. She was seeking the BJP ticket from Hisar but the party did not consider her.
