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Hot seat: Ganaur: BJP on backfoot, but rebel queers pitch for Congress
Former Speaker and Congress candidate Kuldeep Sharma seeks third term but faces bigger challenge from rebel-turned-Independent Devender Kadyan than BJP’s Devender Kaushik, who could at best play spoiler.
Ganaur assembly constituency in Sonepat is seeing a triangular contest with former Speaker Kuldeep Sharma of the Congress taking on BJP rebel-turned-Independent Devender Kadyan and the saffron party’s candidate, Devender Kaushik, who is the brother of former Sonepat BJP MP Ramesh Kaushik.
Sharma, an aide of former Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, is seeking his third term as MLA and banking on Jat, Brahmin and Dalit votes. By fielding Kaushik after dropping outgoing MLA Nirmal Rani and former Haryana CM Manohar Lal Khattar’s loyalist Kadyan, the BJP has pitted another Brahmin against him. In the bargain, Kadyan, a local Jat leader who runs the Mannat chain of hotels, has emerged as a tough challenger for both the BJP and Congress candidates.
Before Haryana was carved out in 1966, this GT Road-belt constituency was known as Ganaur. After the inception of Haryana, the segment was renamed Kailana, a village in Ganaur. Post-delimitation in 2008, the constituency was again named Ganaur, where Jat, Brahmin and Dalits play an important role in shaping the political destiny of candidates. Of the 1.94 lakh voters, nearly 53,000 are Jats, 27,000 Brahmins, 37,000 Dalits and the remaining belong to other communities.
36 biradaris vs two families: Kadyan
Addressing a gathering at Bhanwar village, Independent candidate Devender Kadyan says people of 36 biradaris (communities) are contesting his election to defeat two families, who have failed to do justice with the people of Ganaur in the past four decades.
“I was working for the BJP and the leadership denied me the ticket at the last moment in the 2019 and 2024 assembly elections. After the party leadership’s assurance, I did not contest the last assembly elections. I worked dedicatedly for the party, but it did not reward me. I urge you to bless me so that we can wipe out both these families (of rivals Kuldeep Sharma and Devender Kaushik). They have divided us on caste lines and failed to bring any projects for this constituency,” he says. He accuses the BJP leadership of “selling” the ticket to Kaushik and adds “money won’t be able to ensure his victory”.
Congress tsunami coming: Sharma
Congress nominee Kuldeep Sharma claims Ganaur saw “impressive development” during the Hooda-led government’s tenure and there is a Congress tsunami coming this time. “BJP’s A and B teams are fighting against me. The Independent seeking votes on farmers’ issues should clarify why he was sitting in Khattar’s lap during the agitation against the farm laws. He is Khattar’s business partner. As for the BJP candidate, no one has seen him in this area. He is fighting to save his security deposit. Roads are in a bad shape, no new investment was brought here, and the crime rate has escalated. Due to lack of opportunities, youngsters are forced to do private jobs for ₹8,000 a month,” Sharma says.
Kaushik focuses on OBCs, Brahmins
BJP candidate Devender Kaushik, accompanied by his brother Ramesh Kaushik, a former Ganaur MLA and two-time Sonepat MP, focuses his campaign on consolidating votes of the other backward classes (OBC) and Brahmins to stay in the contest. MLA Nirmal Rani also joins his campaign.
Addressing voters at Kailana, Devender Kaushik says people of the constituency, adjoining the national capital of Delhi, can’t forget the hurdles faced due to the prolonged farmers’ agitation. “Your businesses remained shut as farm protesters laid siege to Delhi’s borders and traffic was disrupted. Farmers of Ganaur suffered losses as they could not sell their vegetables. We must bring back the BJP so that such disruptions do not occur in future. Our government has given jobs on merit, while the Congress only promotes corruption and nepotism in government jobs. The Independent candidate has no base here and is only a businessman,” he says.
‘Govt was working on portal, not on ground’
Rohtak-based political expert Satish Tyagi says the contest in Ganaur looks to be between Sharma and Kadyan. “All eyes are on former CM Hooda. If he manages to bring Jat voters towards Sharma then the Congress can win here, otherwise Kadyan has better chances because of his rapport with local people,” he says.
Sahil Kumar of Begah village says farmers have given up growing vegetables in Ganaur as the state government failed to compensate them for losses due to floods. “Many have started working as labourers in nearby factories. Roads to villages are in a bad shape and the MLA Nirmal Rani did nothing for this area in five years,” he says.
Kuldeep Kumar of Shahpur Taga village cites rampant corruption. “The BJP government failed to develop the international fruit and vegetable market in Ganaur despite being in power for two terms. Now, it is expediting work to garner votes. Crime has increased manifold and the number of unemployed youngsters has grown, particularly in villages. This government was working only on the portal, not on the ground,” he says.
