Crisis shadows celebration as BJP readies for Modi’s Sonepat rally

In early October, the ruling BJP announced a mega celebration to mark one year of Nayab Singh Saini’s government in Haryana, capped by a grand rally to be addressed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Sonepat on October 17.

With Bihar elections round the corner, the saffron party is keen to showcase its “successful Haryana model” as a political template. But events took an unexpected turn when senior IPS officer Y Puran Kumar died by suicide, alleging “continued caste-based discrimination, targeted mental harassment, public humiliation and atrocities” by certain top bureaucrats.

The tragedy has cast a shadow over the BJP’s anniversary plans, threatening to derail the optics of Modi’s show.

Crisis management mode

Despite the political storm, the BJP is determined to make the PM’s Sonepat rally a show of strength. The government’s flagship Lado Lakshmi Yojana — which provides Rs 2,100 per month to women — is expected to take centre stage in Modi’s address, signalling welfare focus to women voters, especially in poll-bound Bihar.

Opposition leaders from Sonia Gandhi and Mayawati to Bhupinder Singh Hooda have rallied behind the late officer’s family, accusing the BJP of a “Manuvadi mindset” that pushed the officer to his death.

Chief Minister Nayab Saini, aware of the political sensitivity, urged restraint. “The matter should not be politicised,” he appealed, while vowing that “the guilty will not be spared, no matter how influential they are.”

Damage control team in action

Senior Dalit ministers Krishan Lal Panwar and Krishan Bedi, along with Chief Secretary Anurag Rastogi and Chief Principal Secretary to the CM Rajesh Khullar, have been tasked with managing the fallout.

Sources said Puran Kumar’s widow, IAS officer Amneet P Kumar, is being kept informed of every official step. “The sensitive case is being handled at appropriate levels with the ultimate aim of providing justice to the family,” said a senior BJP functionary.

Rally push continues

Undeterred by the controversy, BJP’s top brass held a strategy meeting on October 11, attended by CM Saini, Haryana affairs incharge Satish Punia, and state BJP president Mohan Lal Badoli to finalise arrangements for Modi’s rally.

The following day, during a Cabinet meeting on October 12, CM Saini again reviewed preparations for the October 17 event — determined to ensure that the “Haryana model” remains the focus, not the fallout.