BJP seals record-shattering third consecutive win in Haryana
Congress state unit and high command numbed by shock defeat
Party challenges ‘malfunctioning EVMs’ in 20 constituencies, seeking recount, but anger in party top leadership suggests it blames party leaders giving priority to self-interests over the party’s interests for the debacle
Anxious BJP leadership greatly relieved, hinting at self-goal by Congress
When a largely agrarian state like Haryana, where wrestling is the dominant grassroots sport, goes to the polls, the use of wrestling parlance is but natural. So, the shocking outcome of the just concluded Haryana Assembly Elections 2024 can be summed up thus.
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Congress is comfortably leading the bout on points and looks set to win with the last few minutes remaining. Suddenly, the trailing BJP takes the Congress completely by surprise while executing a high-scoring arching throw to turn the tables.
The final unanimous judges’ verdict, shocking and unbelievable for the Congress, in favour of the ruling BJP.
Having led for most part of the bout, to lose at the end, comes as a crushing blow, leaving the state party leadership and the high command shattered, heart-broken and numbed just as wrestler Vinesh Phogat felt at being disqualified prior to her gold medal bout in the 50 kg weight category at the Paris Olympics on account of being found a few hundred grams above the permissible weight ceiling at the time of her weigh-in.
Ironically, even as the Congress was left licking its wounds, Vinesh Phogat, who quit her sport and joined politics immediately on her return to India, found some succour in winning her maiden election on the party ticket from Julana.
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Repeat of similar 2012 situation in Punjab
One is reminded of a similar situation for the Congress in adjoining Punjab in 2012, when all arrangements had been made for the grand coronation of former chief minister Capt Amarinder Singh in anticipation of a resounding victory for the Congress and a return to power in the state. Even members of the bureaucracy considered closed to Amarinder Singh rejoiced at the prospect of getting plum postings.
But in a shocking turn of events for the grand old party then, the SAD-BJP alliance created history in Punjab by storming back to power for a second consecutive term, breaking a 46-year-old jinx.
Back to the Haryana election results, after gathering some composure, the Congress leadership’s first alibi for the defeat was malfunctioning of EVMs during counting in several assembly constituencies, where the Congress in its assessment was a sure shot winner but lost.
The central party leadership, basis feedback from the state party, has raised the issue of ‘malfunctioning of EVMs’ in 20 constituencies with the Election Commission of India (ECI) and sought recounts.
But anger in party top leadership, evident in full measure in the party high command’s review meeting in Delhi, from which the state leadership was apparently deliberately kept out, would suggest that it is convinced that the blame falls on the state party leadership which kept self-interests above that of the party.
Self-goal
It was evident that the Congress had scored a self-goal. How else would one explain the results when the ruling party clearly found itself on the backfoot, facing anti-incumbency of its 10-year rule and a widespread hostile public sentiment in several parts of the state against the handling by the BJP governments in the state and at the Centre of the farmers’ agitation, female wrestlers’ sexual harassment agitation and the unpopular Agniveer scheme of recruitment to the armed forces.
The dominant public sentiment for change was also real and reflected in the exit polls.
So, what went wrong for the Congress in the runup to the polling day! And, why despite a 11% massive leap in vote share from 2019, Congress could not convert!
One of the plausible reasons forwarded by election watchers is that the BJP managed to fully capitalise on the visible differences between the ‘jat’ face of the party Bhupinder Singh Hooda and its ‘dalit’ face Kumari Selja, which got pronounced as the polling day neared.
The saffron party was successful in creating apprehensions in the minds of the non-jat communities that the predominance of the Hooda camp in the Congress would mean that if the party wins the elections, the’ jat’ dominance will return in all facets of life in Haryana, including the government, administration, police, government jobs and development, for which Hooda was widely held guilty of during his 10 years of chief ministership from 2005 to 2014.
End of the road!
So, does it mean end of the road for Hooda’s dominance in Haryana Congress politics! This time he cannot escape taking a lion’s share of responsibility for the party debacle. He had the state party president of his choice for the last two years, and he had more than his due say in selection of party nominees; some say perhaps too much of a say leading to allegations of favouritism and nepotism, which fanned widespread discontentment and dissent within the party.
Hooda is already 77 years of age, and by the next assembly elections in 2029 (unless the ‘One Nation One Election’ proposal gets green light and sets in by then), he’ll be 82.
Member of Parliament Kumari Selja, sensing her chance, has already called for a detailed analysis of the party’s disastrous outcome and demanded responsibility to be fixed for the debacle.
Revamp imminent
One thing appears to be certain, that a revamp of the state party leadership is on the cards. Congress General Secretary in-charge of Haryana Deepak Babria, who was taken unwell midway through the elections, has already offered to resign taking moral responsibility for the party’s poor showing.
State party president and Hooda loyalist Udai Bhan is being accused of watching his self-interests. Rather than marshalling the party cadres, he secured a party ticket for himself from Hodal and largely got bogged down in his own constituency. Losing his own seat in the election could prove a death knell for him.
In contrast, the BJP kept its state party president Mohan Lal Badoli free from the responsibility of contesting the elections to allow him time to devote to micro-management of the elections across the state.
AAP factor
The state party leadership’s overconfidence of being able to win the elections on its own strength and scuttling central leadership’s efforts to stich a pre-poll alliance with INDIA partner Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), may also have cost the party dear. Though on its own AAP expectedly failed miserably, not being able to open its account in the state, the party’s 1.79% vote share could have titled the balance, especially where Congress candidates lost by narrow margins.
On the other hand, rather inexplicably, the Bhiwani seat was left to Congress’ another INDIA partner CPI (M), a move which eventually proved ill-conceived. The communist candidate Om Prakash lost to Ghanshyam Saraf (BJP) by a big margin of 32,714 votes.
Failed to convert: In an election wherein the overall voting percentage dropped slightly from 68.20% in 2019 to 67.90%, BJP, at 39.20% vote share, marking a 3% increase from 2019, netted eight more seats (from 40 in 2019 to 48), while Congress, with a massive 11% increase in vote share from 2019 to reach 39.09% could win only six additional seats (from 31 to 37).
Others got squeezed out in direct contest
In practically a direct contest between the ruling BJP and the main opposition party Congress, the regional parties got squeezed out. The biggest loser was BJP’s estranged post-poll alliance partner Jannayak Janta Party (JJP), which also joined the alliance government led by Manohar Lal government before the arrangement broke prior to the Lok Sabha elections.
From a high of winning 10 seats in its maiden elections in 2019, following its inception after a split in former chief minister Om Prakash Chautala’s Indian National Lok Dal (INLD), JJP got obliterated, failing to open its account. It’s vote share also plummeted from 14.80% in 2019 to a miniscule 0.90%. Its alliance with Azad Samaj Party (ASP) of Chandrasekhar Azad failed to arrest its historic decline.
INLD, with a lone MLA, in the previous vidhan sabha, its secretary general Abhay Chautala, also failed to make much of a dent despite striking a pre-poll alliance with the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP). It added one more seat to make it two, but Abhay himself lost the election. It however managed to nearly double its vote share from 2.44% in 2019 to 4.14%.
The number of independents to win the elections also fell from seven in 2019 to three. Two of them have already extended their support to the BJP.
BJP MLAs’ meeting on Oct 16
A meeting of the newly elected BJP MLAs has been conveyed in Chandigarh on October 16 to elect their leader, who will be sworn-in as chief minister along with other members of his council of ministers in Panchkula on October 17.
Home minister Amit Sharma and Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav have been appointed central party observers for the October 16 meeting of party MLAs. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, other party stalwarts and BJP chief ministers are expected to participate in the swearing-in ceremony.
Unhappy with BJP, people hit hard
The people’s dissatisfaction, and at places anger, has also hit the BJP hard. All but two members of the Nayab Singh Saini led council of ministers given the party ticket were booted out in the elections.
The party also failed to open its account in five of the 22 districts in the state – Nuh, Sirsa, Jhajjar, Rohtak and Fatehabad, which fall in the Bagar, Deswal and Nuh belts and collectively account for 19 seats.
Congress won all eight seats in Sirsa and Fatehabad districts, most impacted by the farmers’ agitation. In Rohtak and Jhajjar districts, Hooda proved that he still holds sway, with the Congress winning 7 of the 8 seats.
Angry over the Nuh Riots of 2023, the Muslim dominated areas of Mewat region rejected the BJP on all three seats.
BJP, however, continued its hold on the Ahirwal belt comprising the southern Haryana districts of Rewari, Gurugram and Mahendragarh, winning 10 of the 11, up by two from its 2019 performance. In 2014 BJP had swept all 11 seats.
LS constituency wise results
Looking at Lok Sabha constituency wise results, in Karnal, represented by Union minister and former chief minister Manohar Lal, BJP won in all nine assembly segments falling within the Lok Sabha constituency.
In Bhiwani-Mahendragarh, represented by BJP’s Dharambir Singh, his party won seven of the 9 assembly segments.
Likewise, in Rohtak Lok Sabha constituency, represented by Congress’ Deepender Hooda, and Faridabad Lok Sabha constituency, represented by BJP’s Krishan Pal Gurjar, their respective parties won seven of the nine assembly segments.
In Kumari Selja’s Sirsa Lok Sabha constituency, candidates from her Congress party won six of the nine assembly segments.
However, her party colleague and Hisar MP Jai Parkash’s constituency returned party candidates victorious only in three of the nine assembly segments.
In Gurugram Lok Sabha constituency, represented by BJP’s chief minister aspirant Rao Inderjit Singh, party candidates could win six of the nine assembly segments.
In Congress Lok Sabha member Satpal Brahamchari’s constituency Sonipat, the Congress performance was the worst, with the party candidates winning in only two of the nine assembly segments.
In Ambala Lok Sabha constituency, represented by Congress’ Varun Chaudhary, his partymen won in six of the nine assembly segments, while in BJP MP Naveen Jindal’s Kurukshetra Lok Sabha constituency, BJP candidates won in only three of the nine assembly segments.
Telling blow
In a telling blow to the BJP, its two-term Vidhan Sabha Speaker and seven ministers fell by the wayside.
Among the 9 members of his council of ministers who were given party tickets only Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini and Industries and Commerce minister Mool Chand Sharma won from Ladwa and Ballabhgarh, respectively.
All the other ministers lost, including three cabinet ministers (Kanwar Pal – Jagadhari, Jai Parkash Dalal – Loharu, and Kamal Gupta – Hisar) and four ministers of state (Aseem Goel – Ambala City, Abhe Singh Yadav – Nangal Chaudhary, Subhash Sudha – Thanesar, and Sanjay Singh – Nuh).
The remaining five ministers – Ranjit Singh Chautala, Banwari Lal, Seema Trikha, Mahipal Dhanda, and Bishamber Singh – were denied tickets by the party.
CM wins from Ladwa: Ladwa, from which Chief Minister Saini won, unseating his nearest rival Mewa Singh (INC) by a margin of 16,054 votes, falls in Kurukshetra Lok Sabha constituency which he represented before he was made chief minister.
Hooda wins big in Garhi Sampla-Kiloi: Former chief minister and Leader of the Opposition in the dissolved House, Bhupinder Singh Hooda (INC) successfully defended his seat, Garhi Sampla-Kiloi, with a thumping win over Manju Hooda (BJP) by 71,465 votes.
Udai Bhan loss: Hooda’s confidante and state Congress president Udai Bhan lost to Harinder Singh (BJP) by 2595 votes in a close contest.
Anil Vij’s 7th win: Old warhorse and former state home and health minister Anil Vij held his own in his traditional seat Ambala Cantt. against independent challenger (Congress rebel) Chitra Sarwara, daughter of former Congress minister Nirmal Singh Mohra, to emerge victorious by a comfortable margin of 7277 votes. Cong’s official candidate Parvinder Pal Pari finished a distant third. In registering his seventh win from Ambala Cantt, Vij has strengthened his claim to the chief minister’s seat.
Waterloo of ministers
Former minister Nirmal Singh Mohra (INC) himself won from the adjoining Ambala City seat defeating Haryana minister of state Aseem Goel Naneola by 11,131 votes.
Coming good on her promise to defeat the official BJP candidate after being denied a ticket by the BJP from Hisar, one of the country’s richest woman Savitri Jindal, mother of BJP’s Kurukshetra MP Naveen Jindal, while contesting as an independent, defeated Ram Niwas Rara (INC) by a margin of 18,941 votes. The official BJP candidate, cabinet minister Dr Kamal Gupta fished a distant third.
Another cabinet minister humbled was Jai Parkash Dalal (BJP), who lost the Loharu seat to Rajbir Fartia (INC) by a narrow margin of 792 votes.
Congress candidate Akram Khan triumphed over cabinet minister Kanwar Pal in Jagadhri by 6868 votes.
In Nangal Chaudhary assembly constituency, minister of state Dr Abhe Singh Yadav (BJP) lost to Manju Choudhary (INC) by 6930 votes.
Another minister of state Sanjay Singh, who was shifted in this election from Sohna assembly constituency to the volatile Nuh constituency, which witnessed communal riots in July-August 2023, lost badly, finishing a distant third behind winner Aftab Ahmed (INC), who defeated his nearest rival Tahir Hussain (INLD-BSP alliance candidate) by 46,963 votes.
In Thanesar assembly constituency, former minister and INLD state president Ashok Kumar Arora, contesting on the Congress ticket, avenged his two previous defeats at the hands of Subhash Sudha (BJP) to win against the minister of state by 3243 votes.
Cabinet minister Pool Chand Sharma wins: Other than Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini, the only other member of the state council of ministers to win this elections, cabinet minister Phool Chand Sharma, retained his Ballabhgarh seat defeating Congress rebel Sharda Rathore, contesting as an independent candidate, by 17,730 votes. Rathore had won the seat in 2005 and 2009. The official Congress candidate Parag Sharma finished a dismal fourth behind another independent candidate.
Clans of the famous three Lals – Devi Lal, Bansi Lal & Bhajan Lal
Late former Deputy PM & Haryana’s ‘tau’ Devi Lal’s clan
Grandson defeats grandfather
Contesting from Rania assembly constituency, Arjun Chautala, son of INLD Secretary General Abhay Chautala (INLD-BSP), won the seat defeating Sarv Mitter (INC) by 4191 votes. Former minister Ranjit Chautala, grandfather equivalent in relation of Arjun Chautala (his grandfather, former Haryana chief minister Om Prakash Chautala’s younger brother) was also in the fray as an independent after the BJP denied him a ticket. He finished third.
Aditya Sihag Chautala (INLD-BSP), grandson of former Indian deputy PM Devi Lal from his youngest of four sons Jagdish Chautala, who died very young, unseated previous incumbent MLA Amit Sihag Chautala (INC) by a mere 610 votes from another clan stronghold Dabwali. He had quit the BJP and joined the INLD just in time to file his nomination papers on the INLD-BSP ticket. Aditya Sihag’s nephew Digvijay Chautala (JJP), who was also in the race, finished a distant third.
Despite a pre-poll alliance with BSP, Abhay Chautala lost his own seat in Ellanabad to Bharat Singh Beniwal (INC) by a sizable margin of 15,000 votes. He had been representing the constituency since 2010, when he replaced his father Om Prakash Chautala in a by-election.
Om Prakash Chautala’s maternal grandson, and Abhay Chautala’s nephew Kunal Karan Singh, also lost badly in his campaign for the Tohana seat as a coalition candidate of the INLD-BSP. He lost his security deposit, securing only 9773 of the total 1,80,367 votes polled.
But the most miserable among the Devi Lal clan was his great grandson Dushyant Chautala, deputy CM in the previous BJP-JJP alliance government, which lasted 4 ½ years before the alliance was dissolved and the BJP went on its own by replacing its then chief minister Manohar Lal with Nayab Singh Saini.
Under his charge the JJP was obliterated, not even able to open its account in the elections. After JJP’s formation following separation from INLD, it had emerged as the third largest party after BJP (40) and INC (31) in the 90-member state assembly with 10 seats in the previous assembly elections in 2019.
He himself suffered a humiliating defeat, not only losing his own seat Uchana Kalan but also losing his security deposit, finishing fifth with a mere 7950 votes polled. The seat was won by Devender Chatar Bhuj Attri (BJP) who defeated former Hisar MP Brijendra Singh (INC) by the narrowest margin of 32 votes in the entire election. Two independents finished third and fourth.
‘Architect of modern Haryana’ Bansi Lal’s clan
Sister defeats brother
It was a clash within the family of late Haryana strongman and former multiple times chief minister Bansi Lal in Tosham. His granddaughter from his late younger son and former Haryana minister Surender Singh and former MP, Shruti Choudhary (BJP), defeated her cousin brother Anirudh Chaudhary, son of Bansi Lal’s elder son Ranbir Mahendra by 14,257 votes.
Another member of the Bansi Lal clan, his son-in-law Sombir Singh (INC) lost the race for the Badhra seat to BJP’s Umed Singh by 7585 votes.
Former multiple times CM Bhajan Lal’s clan
The clan lost its citadel, Adampur assembly seat, after 56 years. Bhajan Lal had first won it in 1968. His grandson Bhavya Bishnoi could not defend the seat he won in a by-election in 2022 when his father Kuldeep Bishnoi resigned the seat after quitting the INC and joining BJP.
Though the margin of defeat was only 1268, what really hurt the family was that Bhavya lost to former bureaucrat Chander Parkash (INC), nephew of Pt. Ramji Lal, once a very close friend of Bhajan Lal.
Bhajan Lal’s elder son Chander Mohan (INC), a former Haryana deputy CM in the Bhupinder Singh Hooda led Congress government, however resurrected his political career by winning the Panchkula seat. He defeated two-term assembly Speaker Gian Chand Gupta (BJP) by 1997 votes.
Another member of the Bhajan Lal clan, Dura Ram (BJP) lost a close election from Fatehabad to Balwan Singh Daulatpuria (INC) by 2252 votes.
Vinesh Phogat wins: Former Olympian wrestler Vinesh Phogat won the Julana seat for the Congress after 19 years. She defeated her closest rival, former airlines captain Yogesh Kumar Bairagi (BJP) by 6,015 votes.
Other kin of politicians who won
Among other children of well-known politicians who won the elections is Arti Singh Rao (BJP), daughter of Gurgaon member of Parliament Rao Inderjit Singh, from Ateli assembly constituency. She defeated her nearest rival, BSP-INLD alliance candidate Attar Lal by 3085 votes.
Senior Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala’s son Aditya Surjewala (INC) won the Kaithal seat defeating Lila Ram (BJP) by 8124 votes.
In Samalkha, Gujjar leader and former Haryana minister Kartar Singh Bhadana’s son Manmohan Bhadana, who quit the Congress to join the BJP ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, emerged victorious on the BJP ticket, unseating incumbent MLA Dharam Singh Chhoker (INC), who lost by 19,315 votes.
In Meham, former Haryana minister Anand Singh Dangi’s son Balram Dangi (INC) unseated incumbent MLA Balraj Kundu, leader of the Haryana Jan Sewak Party (HJSP) formed by him last year, by a margin of 18,060 votes. Balraj Kundu had won the seat in 2019 as an independent candidate trouncing Anand Singh Dangi, who extracted revenge by securing the party ticket for his son Balram Dangi.
BJP made a mess of its prospects in the constituency by fielding former Indian kabaddi team captain Deepak Hooda as its party candidate. Branded an outsider, Deepak Hooda lost his security deposit, polling just 8929 votes of the total 1,49,495 valid votes polled.
Party leader Shamsher Singh Kharkara, who contested twice on the party ticket and finished a creditable second in 2014 and third in 2019, both times behind Anand Singh Dangi of the Congress, was seeking a ticket for his wife Radha Ahlawat this time, but on being denied the party ticket, she was fielded as an independent candidate. Though she finished a distant third, she polled enough votes (29,211) to shut out the official BJP candidate from the contest.
Pooja Chaudhary (INC), wife of Congress MP from Ambala Varun Chaudhary, won the Mulana seat, defeating former MLA (2014-2019) Santosh Chauhan Sarwan (BJP). In 2019 Varun Chaudhary had won the seat and vacated it earlier this year after being elected MP on the Congress ticket.
However senior Congress leader and national chairman of the party’s OBC cell Capt Ajay Singh Yadav’s son Chiranjeev Rao could not defend his seat in Rewari and lost badly to BJP’s Laxman Singh Yadav by 28,871 votes. Chiranjeev is also former Bihar chief minister Laloo Prasad Yadav’s son-in-law, married to one of his daughters Anushka.
Capt Yadav, a former Haryana minister had uninterruptedly represented the constituency from 1991 to 2014, when he was swept away in the BJP wave. He had finished a poor third behind the BJP and INLD candidates.
Two other rebels who won as independents
Apart from Savitri Jindal, among the other two rebel candidates of the two principal parties to win as independents was Rajesh Joon, a Congress dissident, who defeated BJP’s Dinesh Kaushik by 41,999 votes in Bahadurgarh assembly constituency. The official Congress candidate Rajinder Singh Joon, who had won the seat in 2005, 2009 and 2019 on the Congress ticket, could not defend his seat this time and finished third.
The third rebel-independent candidate to win the election was BJP dissident Devender Kadyan from Ghanaur, who defeated two-time former MLA and former Haryana assembly speaker Kuldeep Sharma (INC) by a big margin of 35,209 votes. The official BJP candidate Devender Kaushik finished a poor third.
Former minister BJP candidates who won
Rajya Sabha member and former Haryana cabinet minister Krishan Lal Panwar (BJP) registered a comfortable victory in Israna, defeating Balbir Singh Balmiki (INC) by 13,895 votes. He has since resigned from the membership of the Rajya Sabha.
Another former Haryana cabinet minister Vipul Goel (BJP) won handsomely from Faridabad, defeating his nearest rival Lakhan Kumar Singla (INC) by a margin of 48,388 votes. Vipul Goel had won the seat in 2014 on the BJP ticket but was denied a party nomination in 2019. In his place the party ticket was given to Narender Gupta, who won. This time around he won back the party’s favour.
Former minister Rao Narbir Singh, back in favour with the party after being denied the party ticket in 2019, wrested back the Badhshahpur seat, defeating his nearest rival Vardhan Yadav (INC) by a big margin of 60,705 votes. He had won the seat in 2014 with a comfortable margin of 20,000-plus votes and was given a berth in the Manohar Lal-led BJP government in the state.
In 2019 the party had fielded Manish Yadav in his place and the seat had fallen in the hands of an independent candidate, businessman and committed social worker Rakesh Daultabad, who extended unwavering support to the BJP-JJP coalition government led by Manohar Lal and later to sole BJP government led by Nayab Singh Saini till his mid-term death in May this year at age 44.
His wife Kumudni Rakesh Daultabad, contested the election this time as an independent but finished third, security 30,885 of the total 2,82,285 votes polled.
Denying the party ticket to incumbent MLA from Rai and state BJP chief Mohan Lal Badoli, adhering to its one man one post policy, BJP fell back on former minister Krishna Gahlawat and fielded her in place of Badoli. Gahlawat, who had lost the election from the constituency on the party ticket in 2014, finishing third, won the seat this time, defeating her nearest Congress rival Jai Bhagwan Antil by 4673 votes.
From Kalka assembly constituency a ‘parachute candidate’ Shakti Rani Sharma, wife of former Congress minister and industrialist Venod Sharma, won on the BJP ticket. She was declared the saffron party candidate four days after the first woman Mayor of Ambala joined the party. She defeated incumbent MLA Pardeep Chaudhary (INC) by a comfortable margin of 10,883 votes.
Capt Abhimanyu loses: In Narnaund, former Haryana cabinet minister Capt Abhimanyu (BJP) lost to Jassi Petwar (INC) by 12,578 votes.
Hooda’s relative Karan Dalal loses: Former Haryana minister and Bhupinder Singh Hooda’s close relative Karan Singh Dalal (INC) lost to BJP’s Gaurav Gautam in Palwal by a margin of 33,605 votes. Dalal, who had represented the constituency from 1991-2009 and again from 2014-19 had filed his nomination papers as INC candidate even before the party had nominated him, apparently after getting a go ahead from Hooda. He had lost the seat in 2009 and again in 2019.
In Pehowa, it was third time lucky for Mandeep Singh Chatha (INC), son of former Haryana assembly speaker and minister Harmohinder Singh Chatha. After unsuccessfully contesting from the seat on the party ticket in 2014 and 2019, this time he eventually won, defeating his nearest BJP rival Jai Bhagwan Sharma by 6553 votes.
The saffron party had to replace its earlier named nominee from Pehowa, Kawaljeet Singh Ajrana, after controversial past videos and photographs went viral, in one of which he was heard berating Prime Minister Narendra Modi and then Chief Minister Manohar Lal for their dismal performance.
In Bhupinder Singh Hooda’s stronghold Rohtak, his close confidante Bharat Bhushan Batra (INC) survived a second successive scare to narrowly win against Manish Kumar Grover (BJP) by 1341 votes. Batra had registered a thin victory margin (2735 votes) against Manish Grover in the 2019 elections as well.
Manish Grover, now 70, has been contesting elections from Rohtak on the BJP ticket since 2000, first against Congress candidate and Hooda’s close aide Shadi Lal Batra, and from 2009 onwards against another Hooda confidante Bharat Bhushan Batra. He ran Shadi Lal Batra close in 2000 and 2005 but lost on both occasions.
In his first encounter against Bharat Bhushan Batra in 2009, Manish Grover received a crushing defeat, but he got even with a comfortable win in 2014. As mentioned earlier, he narrowly fell short against Bharat Bhushan Batra in the 2019 and the latest 2024 elections.
Highest margin of victory
Highest margin of victory in the state was witnessed in the Muslim dominated assembly constituency of Ferozepur Jhirka, where Mamman Khan (INC) demolished his nearest BJP rival Naseem Ahmed by 98,441 votes, which by assembly constituency standards is a very big margin.
Among other constituencies with high Muslim populations, Mohd. Israil (INC) won against Manoj Kumar (BJP) by a margin of 32,396 votes in Hathin, Mohd. Ilyas (INC) defeated independent candidate Rahish Khan by 31,916 votes in Punhana, and Aftab Ahmed (INC) trounced Tahir Hussain (INLD-BSP) by a margin of 46,963 votes in Nuh.
Elsewhere, Ram Kumar Gautam, who last won from his traditional constituency Narnaund in 2019 on the JJP ticket, and on joining the BJP was given the party ticket to contest from Safidon, unseated incumbent MLA Subhash Gangoli (INC), winning by 4037 votes. BJP has won the seat for the first time.
Gopal Kanda exited
Controversial businessman and politician Gopal Goyal Kanda, who founded the Haryana Lokhit Party (HLP) prior to the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, lost the Sirsa seat by 7234 votes to Gokul Setia (INC), who extracted revenge for his narrow 602-vote defeat to the former in the 2019 elections while contesting as an independent.
Kanda had won the seat for the first time as an independent in 2009, and basis the help he extended by gathering a clutch of independent MLAs to support the Congress to muster numbers required to form a government headed by Bhupinder Singh Hooda for a second time, had won a ministerial berth.
He, however, had to resign later after being embroiled in a criminal case involving death under mysterious circumstances of an air hostess in MDLR Airlines promoted by him which later shut down.
Despite having launched his own party, Kanda had subsequently lost the election from Sirsa to the INLD candidate in 2014.
Former Congress minister and Bhupinder Singh Hooda confidante Paramvir Singh, who lagged in the third and fourth positions from Tohana assembly constituency in the 2019 and 2014 elections respectively, after having won the seat twice – in 2005 and 2009, extracted sweet revenge this time by defeating his nearest BJP rival Devender Singh Babli (winning JJP candidate in 2019, this time contesting on BJP ticket) by 10,836 votes.
The 2019 performance was the former Congress minister’s worst as he finished a dismal third, polling a mere 16,717 out of the total 1.77 lakh-plus votes polled, behind the winner Babli (100,752 votes) and second placed Subhash Barala (BJP) (48,450 votes). In 2014, he was a competitive fourth, polling 33,111 votes against winner Subhash Barala (BJP)’s 49,462 votes.
