Are BJP and JJP heading towards parting ways in Haryana?

All eyes are on the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party-Jannayak Janata Party alliance in Haryana as speculations of a rift continue to create buzz. These rumours of frayed relations have increased in the last few days amid leaders of both political parties evading questions about jointly contesting the next year’s Lok Sabha and Assembly elections.

BJP Haryana in-charge Biplab Kumar Deb’s recent attack on the JJP has further fuelled the reports of tension between the two parties.

Amid the rumours of strained ties, JJP MLA Ram Karan Kala resigned as Haryana Sugarfed (Haryana State Federation of Cooperative Sugar Mills Limited) chairman on Thursday. He had threatened to step down if the farmers’ demand for minimum support price (MSP) for the sunflower crop was not met.

What is going on between the BJP and JJP? Let’s take a closer look.

What has BJP said?

Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar said on Saturday (10 June) that BJP’s Haryana in-charge will take a decision on the future of the saffron party’s alliance with the JJP.

“The alliance [with the JJP] was forged in the interest of the people. There was no party with a majority, so an understanding was made. The JJP came on board. Independent MLAs also supported us. The Congress only has 30 MLAs. Barring a couple of others, the rest are all with us,” Khattar was quoted as saying by Indian Express.

He added that Deb will take a call on the future course of action, bearing in mind the saffron party’s “interest”.

In what was seen as a show of strength, BJP’s Haryana in charge Thursday (8 June) met four Independent MLAs – Dharampal Gonder, Rakesh Daulatabad, Randhir Singh Gollen and Somveer Sangwan – and Haryana Lokhit Party MLA Gopal Kanda the next day. All of them are supporting the Khattar government.

आज दिल्ली आवास पर हरियाणा के निर्दलीय विधायक श्री धरमपाल गोंदर जी, श्री राकेश दौलताबाद जी, श्री रणधीर सिंह जी और श्री सोमवीर सांगवान जी से मिलकर खुशी हुई।

हम सभी माननीय प्रधानमंत्री श्री @narendramodi जी के कुशल नेतृत्व में देश-प्रदेश को समृद्ध बनाने के लिए प्रतिबद्ध हैं। pic.twitter.com/ELSHyuDaQ8

— Biplab Kumar Deb (@BjpBiplab) June 8, 2023

Sangwan, who met Deb for nearly two hours with the other Independents, as per PTI, said: As far as I am concerned, BJP is at a loss with the continuation of this alliance”.

He claimed that people are “unhappy” with the JJP and if the BJP stays in the alliance, it will have to face the loss.

As per an Indian Express report, Deb also met another Independent MLA, Ranjit Singh, who is a minister in the Haryana government. Singh told the English daily after nearly 45-minute talks with Deb that the Delhi BJP high command will be deciding on the future of the BJP-JJP alliance.

Earlier this week, Deb claimed that Prem Lata, wife of former Union minister Birender Singh, will bag the Uchana Kalan Assembly seat next year. The constituency is currently represented by JJP leader and Deputy chief minister  Dushyant Chautala.

“The BJP is not dependent on the JJP, and several Independent MLAs are in constant touch with us,” Deb said.

“The JJP did not do the BJP a favour by forging a post-poll alliance in Haryana. In return, several of their MLAs were made ministers,” the former Tripura chief minister was quoted as saying by Indian Express.

In the 2019 Haryana Assembly elections, BJP won 40 seats in the 90-member House and JJP was victorious on 10. However, as the saffron party fell short of a majority, it entered into an alliance with the JJP to form the government.

Last year, the saffron party won Adampur seat in a bypoll, taking its tally in the Assembly to 41.

A senior BJP leader recently told Indian Express that there is a “strong likelihood” that the BJP will part ways with the JJP and go solo for the next Lok Sabha and state Assembly elections. “There would be no seat-sharing arrangement either. Of course, if need be, there is always the possibility of a post-poll alliance, like what happened in 2019. That is why both parties are currently working to expand their respective bases,” the saffron party leader added.

The BJP had hinted at going solo earlier as well. In January, Union home minister Amit Shah had announced at a rally in Gohana that the “lotus (BJP’s symbol) will bloom on all 10 (Lok Sabha) seats in Haryana”.

According to Indian Express, Haryana home minister Anil Vij, however, tried to downplay the tensions between the BJP and JJP on Friday, saying: “If there are two utensils in the house, they rattle. But sensible people pick them up and put them back, and the household continues to run”.

On the saffron party’s ties with the JJP, BJP leader and former Haryana minister Captain Abhimanyu had said in April that people do not want such “compulsive alliances” in the future, reported The Times of India (TOI).

What is JJP’s stance?

Following Deb’s remarks on Uchana, the Haryana deputy chief minister retorted by saying he cannot be a “medicine” for those who have a “stomach ache”. Further, he asserted that he will contest the next year’s elections from his ‘karmabhoomi’ Uchana, according to Hindustan Times (HT). 

“Both the parties are willing to contest the next assembly and parliamentary polls in alliance and if anyone has changed their mind, we can’t do anything. If any bitterness emerges between two sides, we will happily get separated,” he said on Friday (9 June), as per HT. 

On whether there are differences between the BJP and JJP, Chautala told PTI on Friday that when there will be any “talkhi” (bitterness), the media would not “get even a chance to ask”.

“Both the parties had discussed ways to maintain a stable government in the state and only after that, the alliance was forged with mutual consent. It was neither my nor BJP’s compulsion.”

In an apparent reference to Deb’s remarks, the JJP leader said that the state “needed a stable government and we delivered on that. Today, Haryana is making progress…I don’t think anyone did any favour on anyone”.

On if the BJP and JJP will contest elections together, Chautala told PTI that will be “decided by the leadership of the two parties and I think both parties want to walk together”.

Chautala has previously said that his party is preparing for all the 10 Lok Sabha seats. “Every party aspires to increase its number of seats in the Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha, and with that in mind, we are trying to strengthen our base in all the seats,” he told ThePrint in April.

Responding to a question on the future of his party’s alliance with the BJP, the JJP leader had commented in April that he is “not an astrologer”.

“I am not an astrologer. I cannot say what will happen in the future,” he said at a press conference at the time. He added that “as of today, we have an alliance with the BJP and it is working well”.

JJP state president Nishan Singh had told ThePrint in April that JJP can make efforts to expand its base in Lok Sabha and Assembly elections while continuing its alliance with the BJP.

ALSO READ: Farmers block NH-44 in Kurukshetra, demand MSP for sunflower seed

What does this mean?

A commentator on Haryana politics told ThePrint in April that such behaviour is not uncommon for alliance partners ahead of the polls.

“All political parties indulge in hard bargaining ahead of elections so that they can get a better share in the alliance. This is what the BJP leaders are doing when they tell workers to prepare for all 10 seats,” Yoginder Gupta said.

Gupta also said that Dushyant’s astrologer remarks indicate that he is trying to “convey a message that he can’t be taken as a pushover”.

With inputs from Reuters 

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