BJP Set For Historic Victory In Haryana Despite Strong Opposition, PM Modi To Address Party Workers Shortly

In the 2024 Haryana elections, the BJP is poised for a historic third victory. Despite facing challenges like anti-incumbency and factionalism, the BJP's strategy to consolidate non-Jat votes worked.

The BJP is set for an unprecedented third victory in Haryana. At 2:30 PM on October 8, the BJP was ahead on 49 seats and was looking to form the government without support from other parties. In the last elections in 2019, the party secured 40 seats, falling short of the 46-seat magic figure. 

The BJP's highest haul in Haryana was 47 in the 2014 assembly elections.

Going to the polls, the BJP was faced with anti-incumbency, rebellions, and factionalism. Right before the polls, it ousted eight heavyweight leaders who decided to contest as independents. But perhaps its worst crisis this year was its break up with Dushyant Chautala's Jannayak Janta Party, which led to the fall of the Manohar Lal Khattar government. The break-up meant that the BJP ran the risk of moving away from the Jat voter base.

The BJP also has been grappling with discontent among the wrestlers of the state and the agrarian community. Unemployment and the confusion over the Agnipath Scheme haven't helped the BJP either.

However, the BJP's parent organisation, the Rashtriya Swayam Sevak Sangh, which seemed to have distanced itself from the party after the Lok Sabha elections, played a crucial role in consolidating non-Jat votes. The RSS reportedly held 16,000 public events in Haryana to gather the support of people from OBC, Dalits, and General category communities. The BJP was reportedly largely focused on the general category votes this year.

The BJP also said CM Nayab Singh Saini, an OBC candidate from the Saini community, will retain his seat. This surely had an impact on OBC voters. CM Saini's seat was changed from Karnal to Ladwa, both of which are in the OBC-dominated GT Road belt.