Haryana: BJP's Bid For OBC Votes, Opposition's Jat Strategy

As the country goes through the big general elections, Haryana is in the middle of a fast-changing political game. Old ties are breaking, new plans are being made, and caste dynamics are being revisited, all to get a strong spot in this wealthy farming state.

The political shake-up is due to the end of the coalition between the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its past ally, the Jannayak Janata Party (JJP). What started as a discussion about sharing seats led to a big break-up, making the BJP pick Nayab Singh Saini as the new Chief Minister, taking over from Manohar Lal Khattar.

The BJP made a smart move to win over the smaller Other Backward Classes (OBCs) vote bank, which makes up 21 per cent of voters in Haryana. By choosing Saini, a leader from the OBC group, the party hopes to get past its past problems and appeal to this important group of voters.

In Haryana, 27 per cent of voters are Jats, a key group in elections. The JJP, split from the INLD, pulled many Jat votes and won 10 seats in 2019, helping the BJP to win.

Yet, the BJP's bond with Jats has faced tough times. This includes fights over Jat job quotas, the big protest by farmers against farm laws now gone, and claims against a top BJP leader, Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh.

The pursuit of the Jat vote bank by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has not been half-hearted. The party has installed leaders from the community and has gone into an alliance with Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD), a strong Jat support base party in order to tap this influential vote reservoir.

At the same time, Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) have shaken hands together with an aim to take advantage of farmers’ dissatisfaction and increasing distrust among Jats towards the BJP. They have extended their backing for agitators to trap the saffron party on this controversial matter.

During these elections, there are some seats and candidates that are making headlines at the state and national level. Kurukshetra Constituency, from where Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini has been in Parliament, BJP has fielded millionaire businessman Naveen Jindal from that seat. Jindal ended his 33-year-old journey with the Congress and joined the BJP earlier this year. AAP has fielded former Rajya Sabha member Sushil Gupta from Kurukshetra against Jindal.

BJP has fielded Ashok Tanwar from the Sirsa seat. Tanwar has been known for turning into four political parties in the last five years. Congress has fielded former Union Minister Selja Kumari from Sirsa against Tanwar.

With results expected on June 4, the competition for support in Haryana becomes more intense. The state's caste dynamics, along with the impact of national issues such as the farmers' protest, have turned it into a reflection of India's complex political landscape.

The BJP's strategic moves may lead to success, or the opposition's attempts to rally unhappy groups could prevail. Regardless, one thing is clear: Haryana's decision will significantly influence the future of national politics.