Torn asunder by arson, rapes, violence

Naveen S Garewal

This golden jubilee year of Haryana would be recorded in history not in golden words, but in blood for the worst civil riots in the state after independence. The state remained paralysed for nearly two weeks during what has come to be known as the Jat agitation. The government was unable to react to the sporadic incidents of violence — the worst being Murthal gang rapes.

The social and cultural fabric of the state was shattered, forcing the government to adopt the “Haryana Ek, Haryanvi Ek” slogan. The violence affected nearly half the districts in the state, forcing the government to call in the Army to the aid of the civil administration. All this happened right in the beginning of the year when Haryana was hoping to start its preparations to celebrate 50 years of its existence.

In the shadow of the mayhem, Haryana went ahead with the Happening Haryana Summit in Gurgaon (that was later re-christened as Gurugram) with the purpose of the inviting investments into the state. 

Claims and counter claims have followed since about the success of the event that was surrounded by many controversies, ranging from the issue of brand ambassadors to the role that each political leader played.

That wasn’t the end of it. An ink controversy surfaced during the Rajya Sabha polls, throwing the entire election process into disarray. The pen supplied for marking the ballot paper was switched by someone, making INLD supported candidate RK Anand, who was sure to win, lose to media baron Subhash Chandra, supported by the BJP. Controversies over beef biryani in Mewat, rising incidents of crime and repeated tension between jat and non-jat communities on account of political statements by some leaders brought a bad name to the state. The BJP also brought famous Jain saint Tarun Sagar to the Haryana Vidhan Sabha to address the MLAs.

Hooda under scanner

The Khattar government initiated a series of probes against former CM Bhupinder Singh Hooda. It ordered a CBI probe against him in Manesar land deal and handed over the case of allotment of land to Panchkula-based Associated Journals Limited  to the CBI.

The July maha jam

Gurgaon witnessed one of the biggest and longest traffic jams due to waterlogging in July this year. Commuters were stuck on the roads for hours. This also prompted the Khattar government to hasten the process of setting up the Gurgaon Development Authority, for which several leaders of the area, including Union Minister Rao Inderjit Singh, had been long advocating for.

Sports, a low scorer

Haryana’s much-publicised Sports Policy to promote sportspersons with an aim to fetch medals for the country appeared to come a cropper when only one Haryanvi player, Sakshi Malik, could win a medal for the country at the Rio Olympics. Meanwhile, several sportspersons were found waiting for jobs under the policy and many had to take recourse to courts to get their jobs. Many players were also awaiting their cash rewards. 

50 years of Haryana

Having completed 50 years of its creation, Haryana kickstarted Golden Jubilee celebrations on November 1. The Khattar government announced a plethora of events to mark the year-long celebrations. The government began the celebration by organising a mega event launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Gurgaon. However, no major doles by the PM left Haryanvis disappointed.

Jat fury 

The Jat agitation in February — that ended in 30 deaths, damage to public and private properties and ignominious rapes of women commuters on NH1 — was undoubtedly the biggest and the worst incident to have occurred in Haryana this year. The PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry put the loss figures at over Rs 34,000 crore. Besides, 550 trains were disrupted and road traffic was choked, leading to heavy losses to neighbouring states as well.

Gita in the spotlight

Confined to Kurukshetra until now, the BJP government celebrated Gita Jayanti on an even bigger scale and throughout Haryana. Ministers, MLAs and MPs of the BJP participated in the events organised at the district level. Among the various events organised at Kurukshetra was a dance-drama performance by Hema Malini, who is also a BJP MP.