Congress quietly nears return in Haryana
New Delhi: There is a straight fight between the BJP and the Congress in Haryana with early trends favouring the Grand Old Party. The regional Jannayak Janata Party and independents will play the deciding role in who forms the next government in the state.
In the Yadav-dominated Ahirwal belt of south Haryana, the conflict in the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) has benefitted the Congress, which is leading in five constituencies, according to IANS-CVoter pre-poll survey. The Ahirwal region comprises 25 constituencies, including Gurugram, Nuh, Rewari and Mahendragarh.
The INLD is leading two constituencies. In 2014 Assembly polls, the Congress got four seats in the Ahirwal region and the INLD got 6 seats.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which had won 15 seats here in 2014, was looking to sweep this belt on the back of its anti-cow slaughter pitch. However, the party is leading in 18 constituencies with a gain of merely two seats.
In a major gain, the Congress is leading in 13 seats in Kurukshetra, where it won just one seat in 2014. The reversal is for the BJP, which scored 22 in 2014, and is now leading in just 11 seats. The Kurukshetra region comprises 26 constituencies.
In a remarkable change in Bagar region, the Congress and Dushyant Chautala’s newly launched Jannayak Janata Party (JJP) are leading in four constituencies, while the INLD is witnessing a near wipe-out with leads in just one seat. For the JJP, a splinter group of the INLD, this election is a prestige battle against its parent outfit.
Bagar, also known as a dry land, comprises of 16 constituencies. The BJP is leading here in six seats. In the 2014 Assembly polls, BJP got five seats, INLD 10 seats and The Congress had scored a zero in Bagar.
In Jatland, the Congress is leading in nine seats and the BJP in six. In 2014, the Congress had won 10 seats while the BJP had won five.