Rudderless Congress continues to stagger
The Congress party’s woes in Haryana show no signs of abating. After the shocking defeat in the Vidhan Sabha elections in October 2024, the humiliating loss in the civic body poll, just five months later, paints a bleak picture for the Hooda camp. The twin setbacks come at a time when both the Congress Legislative Party (CLP) leader and the state party president’s positions are up for grabs.
Despite a majority of MLAs backing Bhupinder Singh Hooda, a former CM, for the CLP leader’s post—who would then assume the role of Leader of Opposition (LoP)—the party high command has yet to make a decision.
State Congress president Udai Bhan’s position has also become precarious. Having lost his own seat in the Assembly poll, he faces mounting pressure from Hooda’s rivals, demanding his removal.
A party in disarray
Amid this uncertainty, the Congress appears rudderless, showing little sign of introspection. The party’s defeat in the Vidhan Sabha elections was largely attributed to the absence of a robust ground-level organisation. Yet, five months on, no concrete efforts have been made to address this weakness.
While ruling parties typically hold an advantage in civic elections, the scale of Congress’ defeat was staggering. The massive victory margins caught party leaders off-guard. Asserting that Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) were to blame won’t help.
Of the 10 mayoral contests for Municipal Corporations, the BJP’s victory margin on eight seats exceeded the total votes polled by Congress candidates. Sonepat previously had a Congress mayor before he defected to the BJP and became an MLA. Here, Congress candidate Kamal Diwan lost by 34,749 votes, having secured only 23,109.
In Manesar, Congress candidate Neeraj Yadav finished last among four contenders for the Mayor’s post.
In Faridabad, the BJP’s mayoral candidate won by an astonishing margin of 3.17 lakh votes—the highest in these polls. Congress leader Lata Rana could muster only 1 lakh votes against BJP’s Praveen Joshi, who secured 4.17 lakh.
The story was no different in Hooda’s stronghold, Rohtak, where Congress’ Surajmal lost by 45,198 votes. The party contested Municipal Council presidents’ posts under its symbol, but failed to win a single seat. In other council elections, it chose not to contest on the party symbol.
Who is responsible?
With most candidates handpicked by local MLAs—who also campaigned for them—the question remains: Who should be held accountable for this debacle?
“This is high time to establish a strong party organisation at the district and block levels. The Congress is still a formidable force in Haryana. If we strengthen the organisation, people from all walks of life will reconnect with the party. You will see the results then,” said former Union minister Birender Singh.
“We have lost numerically. But our morale is high. The party in power uses money power to swing poll. I am holding discussions with leaders for setting up the organisation. Entire 2025 will be dedicated for that. Soon, you will see changes,” said state Congress incharge BK Hariprasad.
When contacted, Hooda downplayed the setback, stating, “These urban local bodies were already with the BJP. There is no addition of a third engine (as claimed by CM Nayab Saini).”
He added, “Even when I was CM, I never campaigned in civic polls. I only focus on Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha elections. These are elections of ‘bhaichaara’ (brotherhood).”
State Congress president Udai Bhan did not respond to calls, and Sirsa MP and former Union minister Kumari Selja was unavailable for comments.
