Bhupinder Hooda and Ajay Maken have taken a hit on their image.
New Delhi: As the top Congress leaders associated with the Haryana assembly elections had assured the high command of a landslide victory in the state, the unexpected loss in the elections has discouraged several senior leaders who had assumed responsibility of assisting the grand old party to victory.
According to party insiders, there were three surveys conducted by the three prominent leaders in Congress to assess the outcome of Haryana elections. One headed by the ex chief minister of the state Bhupendra Hooda, another by the All India Congress Committee (AICC) treasurer Ajay Maken and the third one by the prominent Congress party strategist Sunil Kanugolu. A Congress leader said, “All the three surveys suggested a landmark win for the Congress party in the state. But now when the party has lost the elections, a number of people will be questioned about their performance. The high command was waiting to form the government in the state just like the same leadership was waiting to form the government in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh.”
According to senior Congress leaders, Hooda and Ajay Maken have taken a hit on their image. Maken tried to bring in Dalit leader Ashok Tanwar to reduce the importance of Selja Kumari but it backfired. Selja Kumari was not active in party affairs. The leader added, “Kanugolu seems fine because he was not given free hand in the state and therefore he will continue to be where he is. K.C. Venugopal will also continue to be where he is because his image has been marred several times and there has been no change or he hasn’t been held accountable by Rahul Gandhi for all the failures the party has gone through in North India elections. He will be replaced only if Rahul Gandhi finds another close loyalist or he wants to replace him.”
The number of tickets distributed by Venugopal was around nine out of which none were victorious. From Selja Kumari’s quota seven were given tickets and four won. From Randeep Singh Surjewala’s quota of two, only one won. Hooda had greater influence in ticket distribution out of all the leaders and had got 72 tickets for his loyalists. The Haryana assembly has 90 assembly seats.
According to two national leaders, the reason for this loss has been the arrogance of leaders, who sit expecting a win to land in their lap after surveys come. They do not make necessary adjustments to their strategies to optimise their performance. A leader said, “The BJP is always on the run and tries to overcome all their faultlines on their way to victory. The election belongs to the one who works hard on every front, whether it be leadership, survey mechanism or the hard work of the rank and file, every step counts in the end.”
Moreover, Selja Kumari’s inaction may have impacted Congress. According to party insiders, “Selja is a Dalit leader and she was absent from the scenes for more than a week, so BJP asked the people why she was absent and built a narrative on such a thing. Selja was considered not that important in getting voted by the Congress, but she turned out to be important for BJP by swaying the Congress voters.”