Haryana Election Showdown 2024: BJP Targets Hat-trick, Congress Fights Off Past Shadows

Haryana is set to hold its Assembly elections in 2024, with voting taking place on October 5th and the vote counting scheduled for October 8th. Political parties are in full swing, announcing their candidates as the BJP seeks to retain power for a third consecutive term. Meanwhile, Congress is working hard to stage a comeback but remains haunted by land scam controversies from its previous tenure.

Under the leadership of Bhupinder Singh Hooda, Congress faced allegations of land scams that accused the government of favoring influential figures over the poor and vulnerable. There were multiple reported instances of irregular land acquisitions and a lack of resource transparency, shaking public confidence in the Congress government.

Several major land scams came to light during Congress’s tenure, including the IMT Manesar scam, the Reliance Industry scam, and the controversial sale of Wazirabad land to DLF. Other scandals, such as the Skylight Hospitality, Rajiv Gandhi Charitable Trust Land, and Rohtak Land scams, reflected a widespread misuse of power, with land often taken from vulnerable communities to benefit corporations and elites. The IMT Manesar scam alone saw 912 acres of land seized under suspicious circumstances, highlighting the questionable dealings of the time.

A particularly glaring issue was the illegal occupation of Panchayat land in Namarha village, Panipat, where public property was exploited. Additionally, a major violation of the rights of the Scheduled Caste community was exposed when 129 members of the same family were wrongly given residential plots, further underscoring how resources were misallocated under Congress’s rule.

During Hooda’s time in office, job recruitment was also marred by the “Kharche-Parchi” system, which allegedly allowed people from a specific community to secure jobs through bribery, leaving others disenfranchised. This system, along with special privileges granted to certain groups, contributed to a sense of fear and insecurity among other communities.

The Reliance Industry scam was a key controversy, with 25,000 acres of land in the Jhajjar-Gurgaon area sold at a fraction of its market value. Similar land dealings with DLF and other companies further reinforced the view that Congress misused public assets to favor the powerful.

The BJP has capitalized on these issues, making the land scams a central theme of their campaign. In a tweet, the Haryana BJP stated: “Congress’s CLU gang intimidated farmers, bought their land for peanuts, and enriched the party’s son-in-law. Bhupinder Hooda Ji, the farmers of Haryana will never forget your atrocities.” #HuddakaCLU_Scam

As the election approaches, these past controversies continue to shape the political atmosphere in Haryana. The BJP is banking on public discontent over these issues, while Congress faces the tough task of rebuilding trust amid the shadow of its past misdeeds.