Congress banks on OBC, SC leaders in Jat-dominated Rohtak

The Congress has focused upon Other Backward Classes (OBCs) and Scheduled Castes (SCs) while appointing district unit presidents in the Rohtak parliamentary constituency, comprising Jat-dominated Rohtak and Jhajjar districts.

Of the three newly appointed district unit presidents, two belong to the OBC and one to SC. While all three are considered close to former CM Bhupinder Singh Hooda, their selection has surprised many within the party, as none of their names were being speculated for these key posts.

The Congress has appointed Kuldeep Singh as president of its urban unit in Rohtak, while Sanjay Yadav has been named the district president of Jhajjar. Both leaders belong to the OBC category. Additionally, Balwan Singh Ranga has been appointed president of the rural unit in Rohtak.

Kuldeep has previously served as the district president of the Congress BC cell, while Ranga, a former sarpanch, has been associated with the party for a long time.

“Giving two of three key posts to OBC leaders in Rohtak and Jhajjar districts appears to be an effort by the Congress to strengthen its base among OBC voters. In the previous Lok Sabha and Assembly elections, the BJP managed to secure significant support from this category, especially after making its prominent OBC face, Nayab Singh Saini, as Chief Minister ahead of the Lok Sabha polls,” said Jitendra Bhardwaj, a political observer.

A Congress leader, on condition of anonymity, said at least one of the posts was expected to go to an SC leader, as SCs had traditionally been voters of the party. “Ensuring their representation was necessary to keep the community aligned with the Congress” he said.

Meanwhile, Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs Minister Rajesh Nagar, speaking in Jhajjar, said the Congress was already divided into factions — one of the key reasons behind the years-long delay in forming its organisational unit in the district.

“These appointments will do little to resolve the internal factionalism among Congress leaders in the state. The party will have to pay the price for this disunity in the future as well,” the minister claimed.