Congress' formula to keep Hoodas in good humour in Haryana

New Delhi: The Congress leadership appeared to have veered around to ensure Jat strongman and former Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda keeps the post of the leader of the opposition (LoP) in the state assembly.

It has been over 10 months since the new assembly was constituted in Haryana following the BJP's third successive electoral victory, and the Congress has not yet appointed its floor leader, who would automatically become the LoP.

Initially, the Congress high command was not in favour of Hooda but had now been convinced that the Jat leader is the best bet for the post, and to check his influence, the new state unit chief could be from any other dominating caste.

According to a formula suggested by Congress in-charge, BK Hariprasad, Hooda will be the LoP, with the reins of the state unit being given to a Yadav to strike a balance between the Jats and the Other Backward Classes (OBCs). This will break the tradition of power sharing between the Jats and the Dalits.

From 2007 onwards, the grand old party has had the Jat-Dalit combine managing the government and the organisational affairs in Haryana.

Phool Chand Mullana had taken over as the state Congress chief, replacing Bhajan Lal.

He was replaced by another Dalit leader, Ashok Tanwar, in February 2014.

Hooda was the chief minister from 2005 to 2014. While Tanwar continued to be the Haryana Congress president, Hooda became the LoP after his party lost the 2014 assembly elections.

Veteran leader and prominent Dalit face Kumari Selja replaced Tanwar barely a few months ahead of the 2019 assembly elections and helmed the party till April 2022 when Udai Bhan, again a Dalit, replaced her.

Coming to the choice of having a Yadav state unit chief, the Congress boasts of just a few leaders from the Ahir community after the exit of Rao Inderjit Singh, who joined the BJP in 2014.

These are Rao Dan Singh, Rao Narender Singh and Captain Ajay Singh Yadav.

Yadavs have a significant vote base across Rewari, Mahendragarh, Gurugram, and adjoining districts and have moved to the BJP over the years since 2014.

Rao Dan Singh, 66, is a four-time legislator who lost the 2024 assembly elections from Mahendargarh. Similarly, Rao Narendar Singh, 62, has been a minister in the Congress government. He too lost the 2024 assembly elections from Narnaul.

Like the other two, Captain Ajay Singh Yadav, 67, too has been a minister in the Congress government in the state. A six-time legislator, he had quit the party in 2024 only to withdraw it two days later.

The three also face cases against them. While the Enforcement Directorate (ED) had attached assets worth Rs 44 crore of Rao Dan Singh and his son in connection with the money laundering linked to a bank ‘fraud’ case, Captain Ajay Singh Yadav is accused of using his influence to purchase land at Solan in Himachal Pradesh by putting pressure on the officials to issue residence certificates without proper documentation.

Rao Narender Singh also faces cases against him, including the cash for change of land use (CLU) scam.

The ball is now in the Congress high command's court, and a decision regarding the Haryana unit chief and the LoP is finally expected to be taken soon.