Haryana Assembly poll: Boosting party cadres’ morale challenge for BJP

Sunit Dhawan

Rohtak, June 24

Placating and motivating the resentful and demoralised cadres has become the top priority for the state BJP leadership in view of the upcoming elections to the state Assembly.

Demoralised force

The workers are demoralised in the wake of the outcome of the recent Lok Sabha elections. The party’s vote share fell drastically and we lost in a majority of Assembly segments. Boosting the morale of the party cadres appears to be a tough challenge in the given circumstances. — BJP leader

BJP’s state election incharge Dharmendra Pradhan and co-incharge Biplab Kumar Deb have exhorted the party leaders to reach out to the workers and encourage them to approach the electors in their respective segments.

Pradhan also laid stress on micro-management of the poll campaign, assuring the workers of hearing them out and deciding party candidates on the basis of their feedback.

At yesterday’s meetings and felicitation ceremony organised at the state party headquarters in Rohtak, the BJP workers were assured that the party would allocate tickets for the Assembly elections on the basis of their feedback.

However, party leaders feel that the workers are not only resentful on being ignored, but also demotivated in the wake of the number of seats won by the BJP being reduced to half in the Lok Sabha elections.

“The workers are demoralised in the wake of the outcome of the recent Lok Sabha elections. The party had won all 10 Lok Sabha seats from Haryana in 2019 elections, but could win only five this time. The party’s vote share fell drastically and we lost in a majority of Assembly segments. Boosting the morale of the party cadres appears to be a tough challenge in the given circumstances,” conceded a BJP leader requesting not to be named.

As per party sources, the workers are also resentful on being ignored and overlooked despite their party being in power for two consecutive terms.

“It was owing to this resentment that BJP’s state election incharge Dharmendra Pradhan assured the workers that their feelings and suggestions would be heard by the party leaders,” said sources.

Nonetheless, the BJP leadership has drawn an elaborate plan to combat the Congress in the Assembly elections.

Giving a victory ‘mantra’ to the party workers at yesterday’s meeting, BJP’s state election incharge Dharmendra Pradhan asked them to reach out to 1.5 crore people of the state in the next 100 days.

Two back-to-back meetings of the party office-bearers were organised at Rohtak on Sunday. The first meeting was attended by the BJP’s state incharges, district presidents and incharges, and the second by the party’s MPs and MLAs.

The election incharges and other leaders assured the party office-bearers that the tickets could be denied to the sitting MLAs if their performance or feedback were not good.