Fledgling JJP is no pushover

Sushil Manav
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, February 22

After the Jind bypoll, Hisar MP Dushyant Chautala’s Jannayak Janta Party (JJP) has emerged as a key player for the upcoming parliamentary and Assembly polls in the state.

In the election, JJP candidate Digvijay Chautala had emerged runner-up after the BJP’s Krishan Middha with 37,631 votes. 

With the overwhelming support of the Jat community, particularly the youths, the party’s candidate not only relegated Congress stalwart and another Jat leader Randeep Surjewala to the third position where he could barely save his security deposit, but also pushed the INLD’s Umedh Redhu to a poor fifth position with just 3,454 votes.

For a party which came into existence just two months back following a feud in the Chautala clan, the performance in Jind was really creditable.

Political observers believe that the JJP would be a party to watch in the upcoming parliamentary poll, as from its performance in Jind, JJP convener Dushyant Chautala would like to repeat this in the parliamentary poll to stake his claim on the legacy of his great grandfather and former Deputy PM Chaudhary Devi Lal.

However, there are many who believe that the real test for the JJP lies in the parliamentary polls and in case Dushyant Chautala’s party fails to win seats there, its performance in the Jind bypoll may just prove to be a fluke.

“The Jind bypoll witnessed a polarisation of votes between Jat and non-Jat at its worst. In such situations, it is common for the majority of voters from a community to polarise in favour of a particular candidate who has the potential to win. In Jind, Digvijay benefitted from this polarisation of Jat voters. Both Surjewala and Redhu were losers as a corollary. Otherwise, it would not have been possible for the polling agents of INLD to vote for JJP in certain villages,” said political observers.

“In fact, Dushyant himself benefitted from a similar polarisation of votes in the Hisar parliamentary poll in 2014 when between him and Haryana Janhit Congress candidate Kuldeep Bishnoi, another Jat leader Sampat Singh of the Congress was relegated to a poor third spot,” said the observers.

Sometime back, JJP leader Digvijay Chautala had hinted that his elder brother Dushyant Chautala might not contest the parliamentary poll and would rather contest the Assembly election from Dabwali seat presently represented by their mother Naina Chautala.

However, buoyed with the Jind results, Dushyant Chautala has now announced that he would contest from the Hisar parliamentary seat which he represents in the Lok Sabha. The announcement is being perceived as Dushyant Chautala’s message that he wants to lead from the front.

It is also to be seen whether Arvind Kejriwal’s AAP that supported Digvijay Chautala in the Jind bypoll will enter into an alliance with the JJP for the parliamentary/Assembly polls too, as it stands proved in the Jind bypoll that neither AAP could transfer its votes to the JJP nor could the BSP do it in favour of its alliance partner INLD because of polarisation.

Support swelling, youth enthused particularly

• Dushyant Chautala’s Jannayak Janta Party, which came into existence just two months ago, emerged the runners-up in the Jind bypoll. It is no mean achievement
• However, many believe the real test for the JJP will be the parliamentary polls